More than 1,200 displaced from Sudan’s Blue Nile, North Darfur amid insecurity: UN agency

Adel Abdelrheem and Lina Altawell

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Thursday that 1,210 more people were displaced from Sudan’s Blue Nile and North Darfur states due to worsening insecurity.

The UN migration agency said field teams estimated that 685 people, representing 137 families, were displaced Wednesday from Bukkori village in Qaysan locality in Blue Nile state in southeastern Sudan.

The affected families were displaced to the Al-Ruseires locality in the same state, it added.

On Wednesday, the IOM said 3,315 more people had been displaced from several villages in Qaysan due to insecurity on Sept. 7.

Blue Nile has witnessed military escalation in recent days amid attacks by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM–N) in several areas of the state.

In a separate statement, the IOM said field teams estimated that around 525 people were displaced Tuesday from Kurbia and Umm Muheirek villages in Ambro locality in North Darfur state.

The agency said most crossed the border into Chad, and that the situation remains tense and volatile, and that it is closely monitoring developments.

On Wednesday, the IOM said 1,275 people had been displaced from Ambro due to worsening security conditions from Sept. 3 to Sept. 6.

Villages in Ambro have been subjected to RSF attacks since late June, including raids on markets and the burning and looting of villages, according to Sudanese rights groups and organizations.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five in the Darfur region, except parts of North and West Darfur that remain under army control.

The army controls most of the other 13 states, including the national capital, Khartoum.

Sudan’s humanitarian crisis continues to worsen due to the war between the army and the RSF, which erupted in April 2023 because of disputes about integrating the military establishment.

The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced around 13 million.