Khartoum – Sudan Now | April 28, 2026
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region, saying children are facing “repeated horrors” nearly two decades after the 2005 crisis, amid a marked decline in international attention and support.
In a report titled “The Threat Still Looms Over Darfur’s Children,” UNICEF said current conditions are marked by widespread violence, mass displacement and severe hunger, while the international response remains significantly weaker than it was two decades ago.
The report said more than 1,500 grave violations against children had been documented in Al Fashir alone since April 2024, including the killing and injury of more than 1,300 children as a result of explosive weapons and drone attacks, alongside cases of abduction, forced recruitment and sexual violence committed by parties to the conflict.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said a new generation of children in Darfur is facing the same patterns of violence previously seen in the region, including the burning of homes and the destruction of schools and health facilities.
She added that humanitarian needs have become increasingly complex, while the crisis is being met with a “weak international response and limited outrage,” despite its growing scale.
Across Sudan, UN data cited in the report showed that more than 5,700 grave violations against children have been recorded since the outbreak of war in April 2023, affecting at least 5,100 children. It also noted that 160 children were killed and 85 others injured during the first three months of 2026, marking an alarming increase compared with the previous period.
UNICEF called on the parties to the conflict to comply with international humanitarian law, ensure the protection of civilians, and facilitate unhindered humanitarian access. It also urged international donors to increase funding to support affected children inside Sudan and in neighboring countries, particularly eastern Chad.
Darfur remains one of the regions hardest hit by Sudan’s ongoing conflict, having experienced repeated waves of violence since the early 2000s, with conditions worsening further after the outbreak of the latest war in 2023.
International organizations warn that funding shortfalls and restrictions on humanitarian access risk deepening the suffering of millions of children, particularly in conflict-affected areas and displacement camps inside Sudan and beyond its borders.
