Omar heard about the sinking of a wooden boat in the Nile River carrying displaced people from the Sudanese village of Luni. His heart pounded with fear and terror. The young man, who hails from that village, was awaiting the arrival of his mother and relatives who had fled to his place of residence in the city of Al-Qadarif in eastern Sudan.

A few hours after the boat sank, Omar learned that his mother was not on board. However, he received the heartbreaking news that some of his female relatives were, including Marwa, who was pregnant and had her child Seif with her, as well as their relative Nafisa and her children. They all drowned, and their bodies were later retrieved from the Nile.

Omar’s immediate family survived, but those who drowned were part of his extended family. They had left their homes after the Rapid Support Forces attacked the villages in Sennar State, a major commercial center in the country, and reached their village.

But who was on the boat? The boat carried 25 people: two men, six women, and 17 children under the age of 16.

Omar says: “While they were trying to escape, members of the Rapid Support Forces pursued them and started shooting at them, causing the wooden boat to capsize. Only a woman, a girl, and a man survived.”

Unfortunately, Seif, Omar’s young relative who was just three years old, did not survive and drowned in the river. Omar shared a picture of Seif with us, saying: “His mother was pregnant, but they all drowned – Seif, his mother, and the unborn child.”

Omar recounts the details of the boat’s sinking based on testimonies from his village: “News of the boat’s attempted escape reached members of the Rapid Support Forces, who chased them and started firing at the boat, causing it to lose balance and sink immediately.”

Omar says, “Panic spread among the villagers after members of the Rapid Support Forces stormed the village in early July. During the looting and robbery, they went to a resident’s house and demanded they hand over their 17-year-old daughter. But the girl’s father and brother refused, and the brother stabbed one of the Rapid Support Forces members. In turn, they shot and killed the father and brother.”

The villagers gathered at the sound of gunfire and protected the girl from being kidnapped. They decided to smuggle several women and children across the river in a wooden boat. Unfortunately, they did not survive; they, amongst them young Seif, drowned in a failed journey to safety.

Omar concludes his story with us by saying, “Their lives were simple there; they relied on agriculture and trade. This news is deeply painful.”

The United Nations announced that more than 136,000 people had fled from Sennar State in southeastern Sudan, marking the latest wave of displacement caused by the ongoing war that has been raging in Sudan for about 15 months.

This news comes as the Rapid Support Forces have been conducting a campaign since June 24 to seize the city of Sennar, along with the cities of Sinja and Al-Dinder, leading to the mass displacement of civilians from these three cities, particularly to the neighboring states of Al- Qadarif and Blue Nile.

“A Burden On These Countries”

Sudan is witnessing the largest displacement crisis of children in the world today, with more than 4.6 million children having fled their homes since April 2023, including nearly one million children who have crossed borders, especially to Chad, Egypt, and South Sudan.

Some have been displaced for the third or fourth time. Ahmed and his family are among them, having been displaced three times with his wife, children, mother, and brother, who suffers from a kidney disease.

“It’s as if death is chasing us, as if we have become a burden on these countries,” said Ahmed, describing his experiences. This is his third displacement journey, having fled from Khartoum Bahri to the city of Wad Madani, then to Sinja after the fall of Al-Jazirah State in December of last year.

Their latest displacement journey was from Sinja, the city separating the states of Sennar and Blue Nile in southeastern Sudan. It was a grueling journey that ended with his mother and brother in the hospital, where thousands of escapees from the ongoing battles face significant difficulties due to the closure of bridges and main roads connecting different cities and regions, forcing them to traverse rugged paths.

The Horror of Losing Contact

What does it mean to return home during wars and conflicts and not find your wife and children? This is what happened to Issam (a pseudonym), a father of three, the youngest still an infant.

He tells us, “At the beginning of the war, we fled from Khartoum to Sinja, where my wife’s family lives.” But what happened when the Rapid Support Forces started to storm the area is something he will never forget. Issam left home to meet a friend in a neighboring village, and upon his return, he discovered that his family had fled, but with communications cut off, he could not reach them.

The decision to leave was difficult. Should he stay or leave? What if they returned? Would he ever see his children again?

He made up his mind and left. During his journey, he searched for his family in cars and caravans but found nothing. He spent three days without food, surviving only on a few dates. During his escape to the city of Al-Dinder, which was being stormed by the Rapid Support Forces, he saw families killed and others searching for their loved ones, just like him.

He was shot in the leg by heavy gunfire. When he was taken to Al-Qadarif, he managed to contact his family and check in on them. They were still alive: “We were all in a state of shock when we spoke to each other. It felt like we had come back from the dead and reunited in Al-Qadarif.”

Issam says, “I don’t know what will happen to them. They cannot endure the hardship and terror of displacement a third time.”

Before the current escalation of violence and mass displacement, Sudan was experiencing the worst humanitarian emergency ever due to years of conflict, climate-induced natural disasters, disease outbreaks, and an economic crisis. Now, more children than ever are suffering from hunger. According to Save the Children, about 12 percent of the country’s 22 million children do not get enough food daily.