Updated: 15 November 2025 00:00:06
UNHCR: Escape Journeys from El Fasher Are Becoming Longer and More Dangerous
Moatinoon
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has warned of a worsening protection crisis in Darfur and Kordofan, as escalating violence continues to force thousands of families into repeated displacement amid harrowing accounts of abuses against civilians.
Jacqueline Wilma Barlevliet, Head of UNHCR’s Sub-Office in Port Sudan, said during a press briefing today in Geneva that displaced people arriving in Tawila and Ad-Dabba reported rape and sexual violence against women and girls, missing children, arbitrary arrests, forced recruitment of young men, and widespread looting of personal belongings during their long and dangerous journeys to safety — which in some cases stretch over 1,000 kilometers.
She added that thousands of civilians remain trapped inside El Fasher, including the elderly, the injured, and persons with disabilities, while around 100,000 people have fled the city and surrounding villages in just two weeks. Fighting in North Kordofan has also displaced nearly 50,000 people.
Displaced families are living in extremely harsh humanitarian conditions, with little food, clean water, or medical services, amid rising levels of malnutrition and severe psychological trauma.
UNHCR said it is scaling up its response by opening protection desks, providing counseling and family tracing services, registering unaccompanied children, supplying medical kits for survivors of sexual violence, and dispatching shelter materials and relief items from Port Sudan to accessible areas.
Barlevliet called for an immediate halt to attacks on civilians, guaranteed safe corridors for those fleeing, and unimpeded humanitarian access. She also urged the international community to increase support and funding, noting that UNHCR has received only 35% of its requirements for this year and urgently needs USD 84.2 million for its 2026 humanitarian response.
