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Sudanese Women: Victims of Hunger and Violations

Published on 24.01.2025
Reading time: 7 minutes

Fighters do not hesitate to abuse and assault women. For example, in a recently reclaimed area of Gezira State, a teacher in the Sagai region north of Khartoum was tortured and executed for demanding the release of her detained son.


Adila Ibrahim waits until midday to prepare a meal for her three children, the oldest of whom is just nine years old. The meal consists of asida, a simple dish made from sorghum flour cooked with salt and water over a low flame.

Adila fled her family home in southern Khartoum after losing hope of her husband’s return. She lost contact with him just days after the conflict erupted on April 15, 2023. She first sought refuge in Gezira State before moving again to Gedaref in eastern Sudan, where she now lives in a dilapidated house.

Despite her circumstances, Adila considers herself fortunate. She is one of 2.3 million displaced families—totaling 11.5 million people, 53 percent of whom are children in desperate need of food. Adila is grateful to be in an area where she can find work to provide her children with at least one meal a day. She mourns the plight of her relatives in the Zamzam camp in North Darfur, where the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, released in early August 2023, confirmed the onset of famine. The report warned that famine is likely to persist in the camp and two other displacement sites, as well as in the western Nuba Mountains, with the risk of spreading to five additional areas. Seventeen other regions are also at risk of famine.

A Hunger Crisis Unfolding

Adila told Daraj that she works for a tea seller in the mornings, washing utensils in exchange for 500 Sudanese pounds (approximately $0.21). With this meager income, she buys sorghum flour and saves a little to purchase salt. 

Her eldest son sometimes works washing cars, polishing shoes, or carrying water. Despite her attempts to stop him from working out of fear of exploitation, he insists. The sight of dozens of children working as porters or selling poorly made toys in city markets has become commonplace as poverty deepens and resources dwindle.

Every day, thousands line up outside emergency rooms—volunteer organizations that provide food to hundreds of thousands through communal kitchens. These kitchens offer meals that, while not nutritious, are better than nothing for children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers. Hunger has already claimed many lives in Sudan.

The warring parties have committed violations against these volunteers, despite their efforts to secure food in the face of immense challenges. Some volunteers have been killed, while others have been arrested and tortured. Aid delivery is frequently obstructed, and resources are scarce. As a result, some kitchens in southern Khartoum have ceased operations, putting 50,000 people at risk of starvation.

Emergency rooms initially operated with strong momentum, rooted in the Sufi tradition of communal support known as takaya or nafir. However, this momentum has waned, and many kitchens, like the Al-Azhari kitchen in southern Khartoum, have stopped functioning.

Sudanese people have resorted to eating animal feed and tree leaves, particularly in North Darfur, South Kordofan, and some displaced communities. Despite this, the warring parties and their allied armed groups, which grow in number and weaponry daily, remain committed to resolving their disputes through military force.

This year, 30.4 million Sudanese—64 percent of the population—are in need of humanitarian assistance. The United Nations is seeking $4.2 billion to provide life-saving aid to 20.9 million people, including 50.4 percent children and 24.4 percent women. However, the humanitarian response plan is unlikely to receive full funding. In 2024, it was only 65.2 percent funded, compared to 51.3 percent the previous year.

Extreme Measures for Survival

In their struggle to survive, some have turned to extreme measures, including marrying off young girls, joining armed groups, looting, and even exchanging sex for food and water.

Abrar Brai—a pseudonym—told Daraj that she was forced to engage in sex with Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters and other armed men to support her four-year-old daughter and disabled husband, unbeknownst to her family. 

She tried selling gasoline in small containers to motorcycle and rickshaw drivers but did not earn enough, pushing her to actions that society punishes with death at the hands of family members.

Abrar explained that the dire circumstances have driven many families to marry off their young daughters to avoid the burden of supporting them, despite the risk of gender-based violence. An estimated 12 million women, girls, men, and boys are expected to face such violence, especially with 17 million children out of school.

The disruption of education has left children vulnerable to recruitment by armed groups, where they are used as fighters, spies, and laborers. Girls face heightened risks of sexual violence, abuse, and exploitation. UN reports indicate 160 incidents against children in the latter half of last year, 80 percent of which involved killing or maiming.

This year, 3.2 million children under the age of five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition, including 772,000 who are likely to experience severe acute malnutrition. At least half a million infants have died from malnutrition since the war began.

Resilience in the Face of Adversity

Women in Sudan face numerous risks, including rape, sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation (FGM), displacement, lack of healthcare, water shortages, and power outages. They also endure challenges such as arbitrary arrests by the army and allied groups under the pretext of collaborating with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Fighters do not hesitate to abuse and assault women. For example, in a recently reclaimed area of Gezira State, a teacher in the Sagai region north of Khartoum was tortured and executed for demanding the release of her detained son.

Salemi Isaac, Director of the Unit for Combating Violence Against Women at the Ministry of Social Development, stated that Sudanese women always bear the brunt of wars. They face sexual violence, early and forced marriages, and genital mutilation. 

She noted that the government is working to strengthen mechanisms for protecting women, acknowledging that violations against women reflect the deteriorating state of the country. Despite the ongoing conflict, she considers this a positive change.

In her interview with Daraj, Salemi emphasized that women remain the most resilient group, even in the face of widespread violations. However, her assessment may be overly optimistic, as violations against women are extensive, and the unit’s activities are limited to areas under army control.

Forced Prostitution and Unjust Trials

Human rights activist and defender Noon Kashkoush told Daraj that most women have fled to neighboring countries without their husbands, while those trapped in active conflict zones care for the elderly, the sick, or search for missing family members. This has severe psychological and economic impacts on them.

She explained that all Sudanese families in conflict zones have lost their sources of income and jobs, leaving women more vulnerable to conflict-related sexual violence, kidnapping, sex-for-food arrangements, and child marriages. The dire economic conditions force families to marry off their daughters against their will.

Kashkoush, a lawyer and activist with the Gezira Observatory, which documents violations, reported over 11 cases of forced marriages in Gezira State, central Sudan. She also highlighted cases of women being sold and RSF forces coercing women into sex in exchange for money in areas under their control.

She spoke about the lack of justice for Sudanese women, who face gender-based and domestic violence. For instance, a lawyer was killed by her brother in a shelter in Port Sudan, the eastern city where the army has relocated its operations after the widespread destruction of Khartoum.

Kashkoush revealed that many girls and women have been tried under Articles 50 and 51 of the 1991 Criminal Code, which relate to undermining the constitutional order and inciting war against the state. Both charges carry the death penalty, often based on accusations of collaborating with the RSF. These trials occur despite weak evidence, such as photos or mobile messages that are not verified. Fair trial standards are absent, from the moment of arrest to investigation and legal representation. Accusations often stem merely from being in areas controlled by the RSF.

She added, “Some women and girls spend long periods in prison awaiting appeal after a verdict is issued, leaving them with severe psychological trauma.”

No Future, Bright or Dark

After the collapse of water and sanitation systems and the disruption of communications in large parts of Khartoum, Gezira, Darfur, and Kordofan—preventing access to information and banking services—the RSF has drone-bombed power stations in Sennar, Gedaref, Merowe, and Dongola.

The bombing of power stations threatens a total blackout, disrupting internet, water, and health services. Only 25 percent of health facilities in conflict zones are operational, and 45 percent in other areas, severely affecting women, especially new mothers.

The lives of women and children continue to deteriorate as the conflict persists, armed groups proliferate, societal polarization deepens, and insecurity and service shortages worsen. The steady rise in commodity prices and unemployment further exacerbates their plight.

What is happening in Sudan is likely to lead to family and social disintegration, with increasing violations such as rape, mass killings, executions, imprisonment of women, and the killing of prisoners and civilians suspected of affiliation or collaboration with opposing parties. These killings occur in various ways, including public shootings, throat-slitting, disembowelment, and dumping bodies in the Nile.

Sudanese people from all walks of life, especially women, are paying a heavy price as warlords fight for power. Who will ease their suffering?