KHARTOUM, Sudan — Widespread insecurity and a rapidly worsening humanitarian and economic crisis are affecting parts of Sudan, including the Northern State, River Nile State and the city of Halfa, as power outages and interruptions to essential services escalate the hardships faced by local residents.
In Wadi Halfa, a severe water crisis has left residential neighborhoods without access to drinking water for days. Local authorities have suspended classes at times, sending students home until temporary water supplies could arrive via tanker trucks. The shortage has disrupted everyday life, especially for children and students, who face direct effects on their education and mental health.
Elsewhere, repeated electricity outages have struck Port Sudan and River Nile State after strong winds damaged the electrical substation in Al-Muqran, knocking out two transformers. The outages sparked a health crisis in Atbara, where 80 dialysis patients could not receive treatment because of the lack of power and the hospital’s generator failure. River Nile State Governor said power would be restored as soon as critical spare parts arrive.
In Halfa, the humanitarian situation worsened after 70 families were expelled from a shelter, forcing them to live on the streets when they refused voluntary relocation to Khartoum. The families, whose children are dealing with war-related trauma and have not received necessary care, issued urgent appeals to aid organizations, insisting that Khartoum is not a safe option.
A recent violent incident in the Sakot area of Northern State further underlined the deteriorating security environment. Authorities reported that a villager stabbed another resident to death after a longstanding dispute. The suspect remains at large, and police are investigating with indications of possible accomplices from within the same village.
In a separate incident in Atbara, members of a joint security force assaulted a family after a traffic altercation in the Al-Mourada neighborhood. Witnesses said the assailants, driving a tuk-tuk, beat the victims with whips and stole their phones and cash. When neighbors intervened, the attackers aimed weapons at them and issued threats. Authorities confirmed a formal complaint has been filed with the prosecutor.
Economic turmoil and looting have intensified in Kadugli, South Kordofan. Prices of basic items such as sugar, rice and lentils have soared to unprecedented levels, with authorities citing the near-total absence of supplies and government oversight. Sugar now sells for 24,000 Sudanese pounds per kilogram, and rice and lentils each cost 30,000 pounds per kilogram.
Local sources said an officer with a pro-army militia entered the city’s market with two military vehicles, forcibly opened shops and food warehouses, and accused traders of hoarding goods. This action triggered chaos, with crowds looting everything, including hardware stores, worsening the city’s security and economic crisis. Essential goods, such as flour, beans, sesame, coffee, tea, oil, ginger, salt, sorghum, meat and fuel of all types, have climbed beyond the reach of many families.
Recently, women demonstrated in Kadugli to protest food shortages and rising prices. Security forces responded by arresting several demonstrators, though most were later released. Kadugli has endured a blockade for months by Rapid Support Forces and allied Popular Movement army units, an alliance that has deepened the humanitarian crisis and choked off access to essential goods.
Located on the slopes of its namesake mountain, about 589 kilometers southwest of Khartoum, Kadugli is the administrative and economic hub of South Kordofan, a region rich in agricultural and mineral resources. However, the current situation now threatens the city’s economic and social collapse.
— Source: Al Taghyeer, Al Yurae, local news outlets
