Sudan’s Escalating Atrocities Demand Urgent Protection, Humanitarian Access, and Accountability

5th May, 2026

Washington, DC – The Darfur Women Action Group is deeply alarmed by the latest wave of violence, repression, starvation, and destruction that is unfolding across Sudan. Recent reports tell of a country being dragged further into catastrophe: civilians killed and displaced by drone strikes and fighting; hospitals and health centres forced out of service; detainees reportedly executed or held without protection; food aid at risk of being cut as famine deepens; farms and food systems destroyed; and journalists threatened for revealing the truth. These aren’t isolated incidents. They are part of the same deliberate pattern of mass atrocities and genocidal violence that Sudanese civilians have suffered since war broke out in April 2023, and that communities, particularly in Darfur, have endured for over 20 years.

Despite mounting and undeniable evidence, Sudanese civilians, especially women, children, displaced families, journalists, health workers, and marginalized communities, continue to be denied the most basic protections under international law. DWAG wishes to remind the international community that in the face of horrifying atrocities and grave violations of this magnitude, they must move beyond statements and letters of concern and take urgent, coordinated action to protect civilians, secure unfettered humanitarian access, hold perpetrators accountable, and end the culture of impunity that continues to fuel genocide and mass atrocities in Sudan.

Civilians Caught in Crossfire and Violence

As drone strikes and armed clashes escalate, civilians in Blue Nile, White Nile, Omdurman, and Kordofan are once again bearing the brunt of this conflict between two armed forces. A drone strike in the Blue Nile’s Balila area killed 10 civilians and injured 20 others, mostly women and children, Radio Dabanga reported. In the meantime, the fighting has displaced tens of thousands from Kurmuk, Qaysan, and nearby areas. Markets, sources of water, homes, and other civilian infrastructure have also been damaged, it said. These attacks are more than battlefield incidents. They are tearing families apart, destroying communities, and cutting people off from the essential systems they need to survive. DWAG utterly condemns the targeting and reckless endangerment of civilians and calls for an immediate halt to attacks on populated areas, demilitarization of civilian inhabited areas to enable safe humanitarian access, and accountability for all violations against civilians.

Famine Deepens as Aid Faces Collapse and Restriction

Sudan’s hunger crisis is reaching catastrophic levels while life-saving aid is at risk of being cut. The World Food Programme has warned that more than 21 million people in Sudan face acute hunger after more than 1,000 days of war, and that severe funding shortages could force aid cuts within weeks. Rations have already been reduced to the minimum needed for survival, even as nearly 12 million people have been displaced, and malnutrition among children, pregnant women, and breastfeeding women continues to rise. The use of Starvation is a crisis of global magnitude that requires global coordinated and collective action to respond to it to provide lifesaving assistance granted by international laws. DWAG calls on donors to urgently close the funding gap and demands that all parties guarantee safe, sustained, and unhindered humanitarian access to famine-affected and hard-to-reach communities.

Sudan’s Free Press Under Threat

At DWAG, we are further profoundly concerned by the increasing attacks on press freedom in Sudan and the right of the Sudanese people to know the truth regarding the war being waged against them. The country ranks 161st out of 180 nations in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, having seen multiple incidents of aggression, censorship, and threats directed at the country’s journalists and media personnel over the years. Such censorship is now being further strengthened by an order from the government that demands all media organizations to legalize their operations by June 1, 2026, or else be prosecuted. In a war that involves countless crimes against humanity, the displacement of millions of citizens, rape, starvation, and other forms of brutality against civilians, the silencing of journalists should never be treated as a minor issue since it is merely another aspect of the war itself. In order for atrocities to be kept secret, witnesses of these atrocities are removed from the public eye, and those who have committed such atrocities are empowered to continue their reign of terror.

Sudan’s Breadbasket Scorched by War

The crisis in Sudan has not only ignited violence and destruction, but it has also destroyed farmland and agricultural infrastructure. Therefore, it is equally crucial to note that this war, while contributing to the loss of life, has further destroyed livelihood and other survival means, including land and infrastructure that sustain people’s livelihoods in less conflict-affected areas. A report by Al Jazeera with the help of satellite images reveals how the war in Sudan has destroyed the country’s central “breadbasket” regions, which include Gezira, Sennar, and Khartoum. The fertile lands are no longer producing crops because the irrigation infrastructure is severely damaged, the seed stores and grain silos are robbed, the cost of fertilizers is raised, and farmers have no choice but to evacuate. One such report states that in Gezira, which is an extremely significant agricultural region in Sudan, wheat production was reduced by 58 percent following the occupation of Wad Madani by RSF in December 2023. This destruction worsens food insecurity, which was already in effect for many who are already facing the imminent threat of famine, displacement, and death in silence.

The latest developments in Sudan show a country being pushed deeper into catastrophe every day while the world continues to move too slowly. Civilians are being killed and displaced, detainees are at risk of execution and abuse, farms and food systems are being destroyed, aid is running out, and journalists are being silenced. These are not separate crises; they are systemic and deliberate policy of extermination of civilians and elimination of survival means, creating atrocity emergencies that the world must treat with urgency and respond with serious measures. DWAG calls on the United States, the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, and all relevant international actors to act with urgency, responsibility, and moral conscience to take the following steps.  

DWAG calls for:

• Immediate protection of civilians and an end to all attacks on homes, markets, hospitals, farms, water sources, and other civilian infrastructure.
• Safe, sustained, and unhindered humanitarian access to all affected communities, especially famine-affected areas, displaced populations, and communities trapped in active conflict zones.
• Increased and Urgent donor funding to prevent further cuts to food aid, health services, nutrition support, and emergency relief for women, children, and displaced families.
• Accountability for all atrocities and violations, including attacks on civilians, arbitrary detention, extrajudicial killings, obstruction of aid, destruction of food systems, and attacks on journalists.
• Protection of Sudanese journalists and independent media, whose reporting is essential to exposing abuses, preserving survivors’ voices, and preventing perpetrators from hiding behind silence.

For inquiries, please contact: policy@darfurwomenaction.org

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