After 20 months of war, and three months of negotiations with the warring sides, a bit of relief arrives for some of the hundreds of thousands of people facing famine.
Eve Sampson and
Abdalrahman Altayeb reported from Port Sudan, Sudan.
The largest convoy of food and medical aid to reach Sudan’s battered capital region since the start of the civil war finally arrived this week, the World Food Program said on Friday, bringing some relief to a country where hundreds of thousands of people are on the brink of starvation.
The 28 trucks were part of the first United Nations aid convoy since the war started more than 20 months ago to reach Jebel Aulia, a populous area south of the capital city of Khartoum, according to the World Food Program.
Humanitarian agencies have for months accused both sides in the civil war of and threatening drivers, preventing aid supplies from getting through.
“It took three months of often daily negotiations with government authorities at all levels, and with other parties who controlled the access,” said Sheldon Yett, a UNICEF representative for Sudan, in a statement. “The trucks were detained on more than one occasion, and drivers were understandably reluctant given the risks involved.”
Sudan’s army has been fighting the Rapid Support Forces, a powerful paramilitary force, for control of the country since April 2023. Both sides have been accused of war crimes, and the Rapid Support Forces face allegations of ethnic cleansing.
The bitter conflict between forces loyal to the two generals leading each group has forced millions of people to flee their homes, creating the world’s largest displacement crisis.
The trucks that arrived this week contained food and medical supplies from various aid groups and were being unloaded, the World Food Program said. Food would be distributed to approximately 78,000 people starting on Sunday.
“This is the largest shipment of food and medical supplies we have received,” said Fatima Mohamed, a doctor now based in Uganda who works with Khartoum State Emergency Response Rooms, an aid group in Sudan.
She said that some supplies had been delivered before, to clinics around Jebel Aulia in October 2023, but on a much smaller scale.
Famine is already present in five areas of Sudan and it is predicted to expand to another five by May, according to the Famine Review Committee of the Integrated Food Phase Classification, an international hunger monitoring group. The group estimates that half of Sudan’s population — more than 24 million people — is facing food insecurity.
Eve Sampson is a reporter covering international news and a member of the 2024-25 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their careers. More about Eve Sampson
Source: www.nytimes.com