17 areas of Sudan "at risk of famine": UN spokesman

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Seventeen areas of Sudan, including parts of Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, Khartoum and Gezira, have been classified as "at risk of famine," a UN spokesman said Wednesday.

One year ago, in August 2024, famine was confirmed in the Zamzam displacement camp in Sudan's North Darfur state and has since spread to areas in Darfur and Kordofan, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, at a daily briefing.

Since then, the situation, especially in El Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur, has only gotten worse.

The World Food Programme (WFP) on Wednesday called for humanitarian access to El Fasher which is facing starvation and remains cut off from humanitarian assistance, Dujarric said.

Some residents in El Fasher are reportedly surviving on animal fodder and food waste, the spokesman said.

The WFP continues to provide digital cash support to roughly a quarter-million people in the city, allowing them to buy the dwindling food left in the markets. However, the escalating needs make it imperative to address hunger at a scale, he said.

"We reiterate our concern about the ongoing conflict and renew our calls for all parties to end the violence, and resolve to dialogue and to put the interest of their people first," Dujarric said.

Sudan remains gripped by a conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, which erupted in April 2023. The fighting has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, both internally and across borders, deepening the country's humanitarian crisis. ■