As aid situation worsens, displaced Sudanese worry about warnings of famine

Sudan’s displaced people now face a mounting food crisis, with warnings of famine.

Aisha Adam says her main concern is having enough food to ensure that she and the children in her care do not go to bed hungry [Fatima Edam/Al Jazeera]

The sound of gunfire forced 50-year-old Aisha Adam to flee her home in the al-Kalakla neighbourhood of Khartoum days after war erupted in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on April 15, 2023.

She went to the neighbouring city of Omdurman, but fighting followed her and in May 2023, Adam had to find a new refuge. It brought her to a camp for internally displaced people (IDPs) in Port Sudan, on the country’s Red Sea coast, where she lives with her orphaned grandson and nephew.

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“Amid the clashes, I left with my grandson for the bus station, intending to travel to Wad Madani in Gezira state, south of Khartoum. But I found a bus heading to Port Sudan and boarded it, even though all I knew about the city was that it was safe,” she told Al Jazeera.

The fighting between the SAF and the RSF has killed as many as 200,000 people, according to aid workers. The war has also displaced 13 million people and led to famine in parts of the country.

After Adam was forced to move to Port Sudan, she initially stayed at a shelter for IDPs in the centre of the city. In June, she and others were relocated to a displacement centre on the outskirts of the city.

Accommodation was allocated according to household size. Adam was given a tent to share with the two children under her care, and shared a boundary with two other families.

“At the first shelter, I received some assistance from organisations, other agencies and even ordinary people. But things are different here. The aid we receive has decreased significantly, so I had to try to find work to avoid starving to death,” she said.

Adam’s struggle to feed the two children comes as Sudan faces deepening food shortages. In a joint statement released on October 27, the United States Department of State warned of the deterioration in food availability and the risk of famine in the coming months.

Despite the variety of food at the nearby grocery, Aisha Adam depends mainly on rice and lentils, while other food items remain beyond her financial reach [Fatima Edam/Al Jazeera]

“Sudan is experiencing an alarming deterioration in its food security. The risk of famine in the coming months, as warned by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, needs urgent action,” the statement said.

Fatima is experiencing the real-life consequences highlighted in the report, as finding food becomes a daily struggle. Humanitarian assistance over the past six months has been limited, and she recalls receiving aid on only three occasions. Once, she received 550,000 Sudanese pounds ($59.13) in cash. Another time, she was given 12kg of flour. At the last distribution, she received personal hygiene supplies for women.

“I have no choice but to work. There is no one I can rely on. My two sons are missing, and I do not know where they are, while my other son died before the war began,” she said.

Adam leaves her accommodation early in the morning and heads to a nearby market, where she makes and sells zalabia, a traditional Sudanese fried pastry, alongside tea and coffee. Some days she makes a profit; on others, she loses money.

“I do not know how to calculate my profit. But as soon as I finish selling the zalabia, I go to buy the ingredients … for the next day: 3kg of flour for 21,000 pounds ($2.25), 2 litres of oil for 22,000 pounds ($2.36) and three bags of charcoal for 9,000 pounds ($0.97),” she told Al Jazeera.

Adam says the money left after buying these supplies is often insufficient to provide a meal for herself and the two children in her care. A kilogramme of lentils, one of the cheapest food items available to her, costs 16,000 pounds ($1.72). Meat is no longer on her shopping list, and her diet now consists mainly of lentils and rice.

“Fortunately, aid organisations have been providing water for the past five days. Before that, I used to buy 18 litres for 1,500 pounds ($0.16). Sometimes I did not have the money and had to borrow it,” she said.

Displaced people take up any available work, however little it pays, at a market near the al-Iskan IDP camp in Port Sudan to earn enough to buy food [Fatima Edam/Al Jazeera]

Adam says her priority is to keep her small business running. It helps her put food on the table while helping her cope with the pain of not knowing what happened to her two missing sons.

“The important thing is that we eat, even if it is only lentils and water, with nothing else. But my greatest fear is that we will fall ill, because we have no money for treatment,” she said.

Her struggle reflects the wider food crisis facing millions in Sudan. On October 22, 2026, the World Food Programme (WFP) announced that funding shortages had forced it to cut monthly food assistance to displaced people, affecting about 900,000 people.

Meanwhile, some 19.5 million people across the country face acute hunger, including five million experiencing emergency levels of food shortages. The risk of famine persists in several hunger hotspots, particularly in Greater Darfur and Greater Kordofan, the WFP says.

Esraa Mohammed, supervisor of the al-Suraiha 8 IDP camp in al-Obeid, says displaced families are facing severe shortages of humanitarian assistance and lack even the most basic necessities.

“We have 450 registered displaced people in the camp, in addition to 40 newly arrived people who have not yet been added to the official records,” she told Al Jazeera. “Most arrive wearing torn clothes after their journeys, with nothing to protect them from the sun or rain, and without even a single meal.”

Mohammed says some organisations provide food assistance, including about 400ml of cooking oil per person and 250gm of peas per person. Another organisation distributes lentils, flour, oil and salt.

But these supplies are insufficient to sustain her family for a month, forcing her and other displaced Sudanese to look for casual work to make ends meet. Sometimes they find work; at other times, they go to bed without food.

“There are 100 children in the camp, 30 of whom are suffering from severe acute malnutrition. They also urgently need clothes to protect them from harsh weather conditions and cover their small bodies,” she said.

Mohammed added that some displaced people arriving from South Kordofan had told her they were forced to eat tree leaves while fleeing their homes because they feared being killed by the RSF, following reports of civilians being murdered, detained or raped by fighters from the group.

Ahmed Ismail, an expert on the United Nations and NGOs, describes the humanitarian situation in Sudan as extremely serious, with the basic needs of the population far exceeding the support being provided.

“Sudan is facing a complex crisis involving famine, displacement, the collapse of health services, the destruction of livelihoods and serious violations against civilians,” he told Al Jazeera.

Humanitarian monitoring had indicated an increase in civilian deaths, including those linked to difficulties accessing food, healthcare and shelter, as well as casualties from attacks and violations, including drone strikes .

“When assistance declines, the most vulnerable families are deprived of food and medicine, increasing the risk of death among children, women and older people, particularly in conflict and displacement areas,” Ismail said.

Continued reductions in aid, alongside escalating violations and restrictions on humanitarian access, could turn the crisis into an even wider catastrophe, he warned.

“Denying the severity of conditions in some areas did not change the reality of the suffering experienced by civilians,” he said.

苏丹流离失所者目前面临日益严重的粮食危机，并有饥荒预警。

艾莎·亚当表示，她最担心的是食物是否充足，以确保她和她照顾的孩子们不会饿着肚子睡觉。[法蒂玛·埃达姆/半岛电视台]

2023 年 4 月 15 日，苏丹武装部队 (SAF) 与准军事快速支援部队 (RSF) 在苏丹爆发战争，几天后，枪声迫使 50 岁的艾莎·亚当逃离了她在喀土穆卡拉克拉社区的家。

她去了邻近的恩图曼市，但战火依然蔓延，2023年5月，亚当不得不寻找新的避难所。她最终来到了位于苏丹红海沿岸的苏丹港的一个境内流离失所者营地，与她失去双亲的孙子和侄子一起生活在那里。

苏丹尼亚拉州无人机袭击致至少21人死亡，40人受伤（共3条，此为第1条）

人权组织称，苏丹达尔富尔市场遭袭，造成100多人死亡（共3条记录中的第2条）。

列出3名快速支援部队高级指挥官中的3名叛逃者，指责该组织苏丹领导层任人唯亲。

“冲突期间，我带着孙子去了汽车站，打算去喀土穆以南的杰济拉州瓦德马达尼。但我找到了一辆开往苏丹港的巴士，就上了车，尽管我对这座城市的了解仅限于它很安全，”她告诉半岛电视台。

据援助人员称，新加坡武装部队和快速支援部队之间的冲突已造成多达20万人死亡。这场战争还导致1300万人流离失所，并在该国部分地区引发饥荒。

亚当被迫迁往苏丹港后，最初住在市中心的一个境内流离失所者收容所。6月，她和其他人被转移到城郊的一个流离失所者中心。

住宿安排根据家庭人数而定。亚当被安排在一个帐篷里，和她照顾的两个孩子一起住，帐篷旁边还隔着另外两个家庭的住处。

“在第一个避难所，我得到了一些组织、其他机构甚至普通民众的帮助。但这里的情况不同了。我们得到的援助大幅减少，所以我不得不努力找工作，以免饿死，”她说。

亚当努力养活两个孩子，而此时苏丹正面临日益严重的粮食短缺。美国国务院在10月27日发表的联合声明中警告称，粮食供应状况正在恶化，未来几个月存在饥荒风险。

尽管附近的杂货店里食物种类繁多，但艾莎·亚当主要还是靠大米和扁豆度日，其他食物对她来说仍然遥不可及。[法蒂玛·埃达姆/半岛电视台]

声明称：“苏丹的粮食安全状况正急剧恶化。正如《粮食安全综合阶段分类》所警告的那样，未来几个月存在饥荒风险，亟需采取紧急行动。”

报告中提到的种种后果，在现实生活中都切实存在，寻找食物成了她每天的难题。过去六个月里，人道主义援助寥寥无几，她只记得收到过三次援助。一次是55万苏丹镑（约合59.13美元）的现金；另一次是12公斤面粉；最近一次是女性个人卫生用品。

“我别无选择，只能工作。我没有可以依靠的人。我的两个儿子失踪了，我不知道他们在哪儿，而我的另一个儿子在战争开始前就去世了，”她说。

亚当每天清晨早早离开住处，前往附近的集市。在那里，她制作并出售苏丹传统油炸糕点扎拉比亚，同时还出售茶和咖啡。有时她能盈利，有时则会赔钱。

“我不知道如何计算利润。但我一卖完扎拉比亚饼，就去买第二天要用的食材……3公斤面粉21000英镑（2.25美元），2升油22000英镑（2.36美元），3袋木炭9000英镑（0.97美元），”她告诉半岛电视台。

亚当说，买完这些物资后剩下的钱往往不够她和她照顾的两个孩子吃顿饭。一公斤扁豆是她能买到的最便宜的食物之一，也要16000英镑（约合1.72美元）。她不再买肉，现在主要以扁豆和米饭为主食。

“幸运的是，援助组织在过去五天里一直在提供饮用水。在此之前，我通常要花1500英镑（0.16美元）买18升水。有时我没钱，只能借钱，”她说。

在苏丹港的伊斯坎流离失所者营地附近的市场上，流离失所者们为了挣钱买食物，会从事任何能找到的工作，无论收入多么微薄。[法蒂玛·埃达姆/半岛电视台]

亚当说，她现在的首要任务是维持小本生意的运转。这不仅能让她养家糊口，还能帮助她缓解两个失踪儿子下落不明带来的痛苦。

“重要的是我们能吃上饭，哪怕只有扁豆和水，别的什么都没有。但我最担心的是我们会生病，因为我们没钱看病，”她说。

她的困境反映了苏丹数百万人面临的更广泛的粮食危机。2026年10月22日，世界粮食计划署（WFP）宣布，由于资金短缺，不得不削减对流离失所者的每月粮食援助，约有90万人受到影响。

与此同时，全国约有1950万人面临严重饥饿，其中500万人正经历紧急级别的粮食短缺。世界粮食计划署表示，在一些饥饿热点地区，特别是大达尔富尔和大科尔多凡地区，饥荒风险依然存在。

位于奥贝德的苏莱哈 8 号流离失所者营地主管埃斯拉·穆罕默德表示，流离失所的家庭正面临人道主义援助严重短缺，甚至缺乏最基本的生活必需品。

她告诉半岛电视台：“营地里有450名登记在册的流离失所者，此外还有40名新来的难民尚未登记在册。他们大多是长途跋涉后衣衫褴褛地抵达，没有任何防晒防雨的衣物，甚至连一顿饭都没吃。”

穆罕默德说，一些组织提供食品援助，包括每人约400毫升食用油和250克豌豆。另一个组织则分发扁豆、面粉、油和盐。

但这些物资不足以维持她一家一个月的生活，迫使她和其他流离失所的苏丹人四处打零工，勉强糊口。有时他们能找到工作；有时，他们只能饿着肚子睡觉。

她说：“营地里有100名儿童，其中30名患有严重的急性营养不良。他们也急需衣物来抵御恶劣的天气条件，并遮盖他们瘦小的身体。”

穆罕默德补充说，一些从南科尔多凡州抵达的流离失所者告诉她，由于担心被快速支援部队杀害，他们在逃离家园时被迫吃树叶。此前有报道称，该组织的武装人员杀害、拘留或强奸平民。

联合国和非政府组织专家艾哈迈德·伊斯梅尔形容苏丹的人道主义局势极其严峻，民众的基本需求远远超过了所提供的援助。

“苏丹正面临一场复杂的危机，包括饥荒、流离失所、医疗服务崩溃、生计被毁以及对平民的严重侵犯，”他告诉半岛电视台。

人道主义监测显示，平民死亡人数有所增加，其中包括因难以获得食物、医疗保健和住所而死亡的平民，以及因袭击和侵犯人权行为（包括无人机袭击）而受伤的平民。

伊斯梅尔说：“当援助减少时，最脆弱的家庭就会缺乏食物和药品，这会增加儿童、妇女和老年人的死亡风险，尤其是在冲突和流离失所地区。”

他警告说，援助持续减少，加上侵犯人权行为不断升级和人道主义准入限制，可能会使这场危机演变成一场更大的灾难。

他说：“否认某些地区情况的严重性并不能改变平民遭受苦难的现实。”