UN predicts over 800,000 individuals likely to flee Sudan in light of crisis situation

On Monday, the United Nations said that more than 800,000 people may flee Sudan to neighboring countries amid the fighting in the country.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, said it is now working with a mapping figure of hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the violence that erupted in Sudan on April 15.

“UNHCR is preparing with governments and partners for the possibility that more than 800,000 people may flee the fighting in Sudan to neighboring countries,” UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi said in a tweet.

“We hope it doesn’t happen, but if the violence doesn’t stop, we will see more people forced to flee Sudan in search of safety.”

These planning figures do not mean that the UN necessarily expects that many people to flee, but it believes it is possible and is making plans to meet the huge needs that could arise.

Grandi’s tweet, which was verified by his office, came as battles and explosions once again rocked the Sudanese capital on Monday despite the latest formally agreed truce between the warring parties, and amid warnings from the United Nations that the humanitarian crisis has brought the country to its knees. breaking point.”

More than 500 people have been killed since fighting broke out between Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The chaos and bloodshed, now in its third week, has caused mass exodus to neighboring countries including Egypt, Chad and the Central African Republic.

A UNHCR spokesperson said that the latest figures released by UNHCR teams on the ground showed that at least 73,000 people had already arrived in those countries from Sudan, adding that the figure includes both Sudanese and refugees mainly from South Sudan returning to their homes.

Sudan hosted 1.13 million refugees before the conflict began – one of the largest refugee populations in Africa – including some 800,000 South Sudanese.

The fighting has also caused an exodus of foreigners and international staff, with countries around the world frantically evacuating by land, sea and air.

Grandi’s estimate of the number of people who could eventually flee the violence was a dramatic increase from last Tuesday, when UNHCR gave a mapping figure of 270,000 people fleeing to neighboring Chad and South Sudan.