Image Source: CNN
World – UNICEF Representative for Sudan, Sheldon Yett, has sounded the alarm over a sharp rise in grave violations against children across the Darfur states, with North Darfur experiencing some of the worst violence.
“An estimated 825,000 children are trapped in a growing catastrophe in and around Al Fasher. With these numbers reflecting only verified incidents, it is likely the true toll is far higher, with children in a daily struggle to survive.
“Death is a constant threat for children, whether due to the fighting around them or the collapse of the vital services they rely on to survive,” Yett stated.
Since the start of 2025, 110 child rights violations have been verified in North Darfur alone, while Sudan as a whole has seen an 83 per cent rise in child casualties compared to the first quarter of 2024.
In Al Fasher, more than 70 children have been killed or maimed in under three months, with shelling and airstrikes on the Zamzam camp for internally displaced people accounting for 16 per cent of all verified casualties.
The humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate. Over 60,000 people have been newly displaced in North Darfur in just six weeks, adding to the more than 600,000 displaced between April 2024 and January 2025—including 300,000 children.
Approximately 900,000 people in Al Fasher and 750,000 in Zamzam remain trapped by active conflict, half of which are children, with all access routes blocked.
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Worsening Food Insecurity and Malnutrition
“The Tawila-Zamzam road, once a vital link, is now impassable,” UNICEF reported. Armed groups are targeting rural villages, and insecurity has rendered the delivery of aid nearly impossible.
Communities face severe food, water, medicine and nutrition shortages, with food prices nearly doubling in three months. Malnutrition is rampant. More than 457,000 children are acutely malnourished in North Darfur, including nearly 146,000 with severe acute malnutrition.
UNICEF’s supply of therapeutic food in Al Fasher has been depleted, and stocks in Zamzam will run out within three weeks. UNICEF estimates that 500,000 children are at immediate risk if supplies cannot be delivered. Despite the risks, UNICEF and its partners continue delivering support. However, the window for action is rapidly closing.
The organisation is urgently calling on the Government of Sudan, all parties to the conflict, and their external backers to take immediate, collective steps to end the violence and uphold international law.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to this hell on earth,” Yett said. “UNICEF calls on all parties to facilitate safe, unimpeded humanitarian access so that life-saving aid can reach children in Al Fasher, Zamzam and other affected areas … Children’s lives depend on it.”
