Darfur’s war turns bread into a weapon. Who will eat, and who will not?
El Fasher, Darfur
In Sudan, war has made hunger a weapon. Aid trucks burn on the road, markets lie empty, and entire neighborhoods are cut off from food. One year after famine was first confirmed, starvation is spreading, and the front line looks more like a bread line.
In August, a U.N.–contracted convoy carrying food to North Darfur was struck by drones and partly destroyed. It was supposed to bring sorghum, oil, and emergency rations to thousands of people. Instead, families waited in vain, trapped between conflict and collapse.
The numbers tell their own story. The U.N. estimates that 24.6 million people, which is nearly half the country, are facing acute food insecurity. In parts of Darfur and Kordofan, famine has already taken hold. Inflation has pushed staples out of reach, and even families with money cannot find food to buy. Fields lie abandoned as farmers flee fighting, and irrigation networks are breaking down, cutting off one of the last lifelines for rural communities.
The government in Khartoum has issued statements pledging safe corridors for aid, but access remains blocked. Security Council appeals and press releases from donor governments echo across Geneva and New York, while inside Sudan the reality is starker: convoys do not move, warehouses empty out, and hunger deepens.
“The crisis is man-made,” one U.N. official said. “People are not starving because food doesn’t exist. They are starving because food cannot reach them.”
The world’s major aid agencies, including WFP, FAO, UNICEF, are unanimous: without immediate, secure access, Sudan risks one of the worst hunger catastrophes in decades. Seeds, veterinary support, and emergency rations could stabilize local supply, but only if trucks survive the road in. For now, the road itself has become the enemy.
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Sources
- “Drone attack destroys trucks carrying UN food to Sudan’s famine‑hit Darfur region” – Associated Press, Aug 21, 2025. Covers the drone strike on a U.N. convoy delivering food aid.
Wikipedia+7AP News+7U.S. News+7 - “Hunger and disease spreading in war‑torn Sudan, WHO says” – Reuters, Aug 8 2025. Reports on acute food insecurity, malnutrition projections, and disease outbreaks including cholera.
UNICEF+4Reuters+4The Sun+4 - “Driven to starvation, Sudanese people eat weeds and plants to survive as war rages” – AP News, July 2025. Describes how communities are resorting to wild plants amid blocked aid and wrecked markets.
AP News+2Wikipedia+2 - “Spreading famine threatens hundreds of thousands of lives in Sudan, panel warns” – Wall Street Journal via summary, earlier in 2025. Highlights IPC’s finding that over 24 million face food insecurity and identifies catastrophic hunger zones.
The Wall Street Journal - “Almost 300 m people at risk of death through starvation – report” – The Guardian, May 2025. Global food insecurity report emphasizing Sudan’s staggering share of those at famine risk.
AP News+15The Guardian+15The Sun+15 - “Sudan faces worsening humanitarian catastrophe as …” – Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Apr 14 2025. UN human rights experts raise alarm over starvation amidst conflict.
OHCHR+1 - “Sudan: using starvation as a weapon of war in Sudan must stop” – OHCHR, June 26 2024. UN experts condemn the use of starvation as a deliberate tactic in the conflict.
OHCHR+2Wikipedia+2 - “Sudan malnutrition crisis: MSF renews call for immediate action…” – Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Feb 3 2025. MSF data underscores that 24.6 million people face acute food insecurity, and outlines the shortfall in aid deliveries.
Doctors Without Borders+1 - “Sudan: UN fact‑finding mission deplores Darfur killings as …” – OHCHR, Apr 14 2025. Highlights the broader humanitarian crisis and killings in Darfur.
The Sun+11OHCHR+11OHCHR+11 - “Sudan: Briefing : What’s In Blue” – Security Council Report, Mar 12 2025. Summarizes the humanitarian fallout: civilian casualties, starvation, and water shortages.
Security Council Report - “Famine in Sudan (2024–present)” – Wikipedia, updated recently. Offers an overview of the famine’s scope, mortality estimates, and contributing factors.
Wikipedia+2Wikipedia+2 - “Humanitarian impact of the Sudanese civil war (2023–present)” – Wikipedia, current. Details widespread disruptions to hospitals, aid looting, food/water shortages, displacement, and disease.
Wikipedia
