EL OBEID, SUDAN
Sudan’s devastating civil war is driving a new wave of mass displacement across the Kordofan region, where escalating clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have forced tens of thousands of civilians to abandon their homes in search of safety. In just one week, more than 5,000 families arrived in El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, according to humanitarian reporting. Families fleeing violence from surrounding towns and villages have transformed the city into one of the country’s largest emergency refuge centres, placing enormous pressure on already overstretched public services and humanitarian agencies. The latest displacement comes amid intensified fighting across Kordofan, a strategically important region linking central Sudan with Darfur and the country’s western territories. The International Organization for Migration estimates that more than 200,000 people have been newly displaced across the wider Kordofan region since late 2025, highlighting the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation.
El Obeid Faces Mounting Humanitarian Pressure
El Obeid has increasingly become a sanctuary for civilians escaping frontline communities, but the city itself is now struggling to absorb the growing population. Recent fighting and drone attacks have severely affected essential infrastructure. Damage to the city’s main electricity transformer has disrupted power supplies, affecting hospitals, water pumping stations and telecommunications networks. These interruptions have made daily life even more difficult for both residents and newly displaced families. Humanitarian organisations warn that food supplies, clean drinking water, shelter and medical services are becoming increasingly scarce as thousands continue arriving each week. The challenge is compounded by the fact that El Obeid was already home to a substantial displaced population before the latest wave of violence began.
The human cost of the conflict is becoming increasingly visible along the roads leading into El Obeid. According to humanitarian reports, an attack on Um Arada on August 14 killed at least 18 civilians and injured 17 others. The violence forced more than 300 families to flee towards El Obeid in search of protection. Only days later, renewed attacks on nearby villages displaced another 1,000 people from approximately 215 families. Many travelled several kilometres on foot, carrying children, personal belongings and whatever possessions they could save before leaving their homes behind. Women, children and elderly people make up a significant proportion of those arriving in the city, many in urgent need of food, healthcare and emergency shelter.
Children remain among the most vulnerable victims of Sudan’s prolonged conflict. Save the Children reported that nearly 39,000 displaced children reached El Obeid during the first six months of 2026. The organisation has also warned of worsening child malnutrition across the surrounding Sheikan locality. In April alone, healthcare facilities supported by Save the Children treated 426 children suffering from malnutrition, compared with 195 during the previous month, reflecting the rapidly increasing nutritional crisis affecting displaced communities. For many families, reaching El Obeid does not mark the end of their suffering. It simply begins another struggle for survival, with parents searching for food, clean water, medicine and a safe place for their children to sleep.
Sudan’s conflict began in April 2023 after a bitter power struggle erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. More than three years later, the war has devastated cities, destroyed infrastructure and created one of the world’s largest displacement emergencies. United Nations estimates indicate that around 8.6 million people are internally displaced across Sudan, while millions more have crossed into neighbouring countries. Approximately 33.7 million people now require humanitarian assistance, making Sudan one of the most serious humanitarian crises anywhere in the world. Kordofan has emerged as one of the conflict’s most critical battlegrounds because of its strategic location. Control of the region’s roads, towns and supply routes is vital to both military sides, leaving civilians trapped between shifting frontlines and repeated cycles of displacement.
Humanitarian organisations say the scale of need is growing faster than available assistance. The World Food Programme has described El Obeid as an emerging epicentre of Sudan’s displacement and hunger crisis, warning that food stocks, fuel supplies and access to clean water are under increasing pressure. Emergency shelters are rapidly filling, while hospitals are coping with rising numbers of injured civilians, malnourished children and families requiring urgent medical attention. Aid operations have also become increasingly difficult because insecurity continues to restrict humanitarian access to communities trapped inside active conflict zones. The United Nations has repeatedly called on all parties to protect civilians, safeguard civilian infrastructure and allow humanitarian organisations safe and unrestricted access to affected populations.
The battle for Kordofan is strategically significant for Sudan’s military landscape, but for ordinary citizens the consequences are painfully simple. Every new offensive creates another wave of families forced from their homes. Communities that believed they had escaped the conflict often find themselves displaced again as control of towns and villages changes hands. For thousands now arriving in El Obeid, military maps and territorial gains hold little meaning compared with immediate human needs. Their priorities are shelter, food, clean water and the safety of their children.
A Humanitarian Emergency Beyond the Battlefield
The growing influx into El Obeid reflects the wider tragedy unfolding across Sudan. The city has become both a refuge for displaced civilians and a symbol of a humanitarian catastrophe that continues to deepen with every passing week. Families are arriving exhausted, often with little more than the clothes they are wearing, while humanitarian agencies struggle to provide essential assistance. As fighting intensifies across Kordofan, the international community faces an urgent challenge: ensuring that El Obeid remains capable of sheltering those fleeing violence while reaching civilians still trapped inside conflict affected areas. For Sudan’s displaced families, survival is no longer defined by the outcome of the war alone, but by whether food reaches their children, hospitals remain operational and humanitarian aid can arrive before another wave of violence forces even more people onto the road.
