The number of missing persons cases recorded by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Sudan has exceeded 11,000, with an increase of over 40% just last year. Such numbers vividly illustrate the human cost of prolonged conflicts.
The shifting frontlines have displaced over 11 million people in multiple instances. Four million have fled the country in search of safety abroad.
Due to the destruction of communication networks, numerous families have lost contact with their loved ones. The uncertainty surrounding their fate generates deep and lasting psychological suffering.
“My children have not forgotten their father,” says Om Omar, a mother of four whose husband disappeared over two years ago. “My son often cries and asks me about him. When detainees were released, the children would watch TV hoping to see their father.”
Although facing immense challenges, hundreds of families managed to reconnect with their relatives in 2025. More than 560,000 phone calls were facilitated by the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in Sudan, Egypt, South Sudan, and Chad.
Restoring family links is a key aspect of the joint response led by the ICRC and the Sudanese Red Crescent to address one of the world’s most severe humanitarian emergencies – yet one of the least visible. The ICRC also works to promote knowledge and respect for international humanitarian law (IHL) in a conflict marked by widespread violations of the laws of war.
In conflict zones in Sudan, 70 to 80% of healthcare infrastructures are non-operational or severely lacking resources. Over 70% of the population depends on agriculture and livestock, which are now greatly affected. Coupled with property loss and forced displacement, these pressures diminish people’s ability to cope and rebuild their lives.
Similarly, despite being strictly prohibited by IHL, sexual violence remains one of the most devastating and least visible consequences of the conflict. Stigma and fear of rejection prevent many victims from reporting incidents, thereby concealing the extent of the issue and prolonging the suffering of survivors.
Meanwhile, Sudanese communities are at the forefront of humanitarian response. Despite significant challenges, people continue to support each other, share resources, and maintain essential community networks, thereby preserving life and dignity in extremely precarious conditions.
This daily solidarity reflects both the scale of needs and the determination of the most affected individuals, who bear the heaviest consequences. For instance, 22 volunteers from the Sudanese Red Crescent lost their lives since the onset of the war while assisting others.
“The suffering caused by the war has reached unprecedented levels of distress for civilians, particularly due to its impact on critical infrastructure such as markets, hospitals, water treatment facilities, and power plants. We see this in the states of Darfur, Kordofan, White Nile, Blue Nile, Khartoum, and the North. At one point or another, the entire country has been affected by indiscriminate attacks,” reports Daniel O’Malley, an ICRC official in Sudan.
“Those directly involved in the conflict, as well as those exerting direct influence, must end hostilities or promote their resolution. The cost of inaction today will be unbearable tomorrow.”
Today, the ICRC has released a humanitarian report that focuses on three critical areas where civilian protection is both urgent and achievable: preserving critical infrastructure that provides essential services, addressing the situation of separated or missing family members, as well as the dignified treatment of the deceased, and preventing and responding to sexual violence.
About the ICRC The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a neutral, impartial, and independent organization whose strictly humanitarian mandate stems from the 1949 Geneva Conventions. It assists people affected by armed conflict or other situations of violence worldwide, striving to improve their conditions and protect their lives and dignity in collaboration with Red Cross and Red Crescent partners.
For More Information: Adnan Hezam, ICRC Port Sudan, Tel: +249 100 999 477 | +249 900 940 377, Email: ahizam@icrc.org Mateo Jaramillo, ICRC Nairobi, Tel: +254 716 897 265, Email: mjaramillo@icrc.org Jean-Yves Clemenz, ICRC Geneva, Tel: +41 79 251 93 02, Email: jclemenzo@icrc.org
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