Sudan crisis far worse than the world knows

During his first visit to Khartoum since the war erupted, an official from the Islamic Relief organization described a city once home to 7 million people now nearly deserted, its buildings destroyed or heavily damaged by shelling and airstrikes. He said the scale of destruction was unprecedented in his 30 years of relief work.

Difficulty accessing many areas and a sense that this is a complex war in a remote place have left the crisis without the international attention it needs. So far, the recorded death toll exceeds 58,000, but estimates range as high as 150,000. Tracking casualties is nearly impossible as infrastructure crumbles and millions are displaced.

People are dying not only from violence but also from disease and hunger. Outbreaks of cholera, hepatitis, meningitis, yellow fever and other infectious diseases have struck in succession. The war has created the world's largest hunger crisis: 29 million people (62% of the population) lack food, and famine continues to spread. Community kitchens run by volunteers are the heart of the fight against hunger, but 42% of the 844 surveyed kitchens have closed in the past six months due to funding and supply shortages.

The conflict between the US-Israel and Iran has further choked supply chains, doubling food and fuel prices and pushing more families into hunger.

In western Darfur and Kordofan, people continue to flee drone attacks on hospitals and schools, besieged towns, burning villages and bombed aid convoys. In Khartoum and the east, where security has improved, at least 1.3 million people have returned to the capital only to face a hellish reality: severe food shortages, few jobs and almost no services. About 200 schools in Khartoum have stopped operating because they were destroyed or turned into shelters for the displaced; children have no place to learn. Hospitals have been looted or destroyed, functioning only partially. Electricity is available only a few hours a day.

Relief teams are helping rebuild schools and health facilities, providing psychological support to survivors. A woman named Ayesha said her four sons were killed by warring factions, and she had to carry her grandchildren for five days to reach a refugee camp in Gadarif city. Everyone has a similar story of loss and dangerous journeys.

The greatest fear now is that the endless war in the west could lead to Sudan, one of Africa's largest countries, being split in two. A conference of world leaders last month in Berlin marking three years of war yielded no significant diplomatic breakthrough to achieve lasting peace and protect civilians.

What the people of Sudan most long for is for the war to end, so they can return home, live in dignity and without fear.