15th April 2023 marked the beginning of the first gunshots of an ongoing war in Sudan; a crisis which has failed to receive any attention globally. The war, rooted by conflict between Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group, has left millions of Sudanese citizens in a modern-day humanitarian crisis. 

With an uprise in forced displacement numbers – now exceeding 12 million –  many citizens have become refugees. Children are deprived of any formal education and are forced to believe that it is a privilege. Healthcare services have become scarce and with 24.6 million Sudanese facing acute hunger, Sudan is now among the top countries to face famine – the first proclaimed famine since COVID-19. 

The underlying truth of this matter is blood-shed brutality. Sudan’s food systems have been under attack multiple times, and aid programs have had to suspend operations due to volunteers being killed. Factories have been burned and multiple food sources destroyed. The violence targeted towards aid and health workers have also faltered medical attention necessary to combat the high levels of cholera and malaria in Sudan – only further increasing an already unfathomable death count.

Reports have shown that around nine aid workers and over 18,800 civilians have been killed – lives lost everyday to ethnic cleansing. Additionally, women and children are becoming increasingly vulnerable to sexual abuse with each passing day. As the conflict still continues in 2025, innocent civilians are being subjected to violence; the inevitable consequence of war. And yet, the world remains silent. 

Pages of history books show that Sudan has always been a ground for never-ending conflict. However, today the lack of a global response is louder than ever. The cries of innocent children are drowned out by artillery shelling and drone attacks – yet who is telling their story? The people of Sudan have been forced to accept necessities as luxuries, and violence as the norm. Ignorance breeds comfort but it should never be at the cost of young children’s stolen futures. Sudan is not just another story or a headline. It is a bleeding nation screaming for help.  

By Aishath Nova Waseem 

11-B1 (Batch 2026)

References: 

UN News. Sudan: 15 million children require humanitarian assistance after two years of war. 14 April 2025, https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/04/1162226

Russell, Catherine. Statement by UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. UNICEF, 12 April 2025, https://www.unicef.org/sudan/press-releases/least-23-children-and-9-aid-workers-reportedly-killed-al-fasher-abu-shouk-and-zamzam