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The United Nations reported that at least 3,384 civilians were killed in Sudan between Jan. 1 and June 30 amid ongoing clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), highlighting the deepening humanitarian crisis, U.N. officials said Friday.
Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, presented a report during the weekly press briefing at the U.N. Office in Geneva.
The report noted that most deaths occurred in Darfur, Kordofan, and Khartoum, representing roughly 80% of all civilian fatalities documented in 2024. The actual number of deaths is likely higher.
The report detailed that 70% of casualties resulted from attacks on densely populated areas. RSF assaults in April on El Fasher and northern Darfur alone killed 527 people.
Outside of direct conflict, at least 990 civilians were unlawfully killed, with incidents tripling between February and April.
The U.N. said Sudan is facing one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. Around 24.6 million people face acute food insecurity, 19 million lack access to safe water and sanitation, and a cholera outbreak is ongoing.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called the conflict a “forgotten war” and urged immediate action to end the violence, ensure accountability, and provide unimpeded humanitarian aid.
Since April 15, 2023, the fighting has displaced over 11 million people internally and pushed nearly 4 million into neighboring countries. The conflict has severely damaged Sudan’s infrastructure, health, education, and economy.
On May 20, Sudan’s army regained control of the capital Khartoum, while RSF moved operations westward.
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