Khartoum in Crisis: 97% of Households Face Food Shortages as Health System Collapses

Humanitarian Assessment Warns of Widespread Hunger and Health System Breakdown in Khartoum

An assessment published this week by Medical Teams International and Norwegian Church Aid warns that 97% of households in Khartoum are experiencing food shortages and that the city’s health services have largely collapsed, underscoring the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan.

The study surveyed more than 1,250 families and 70 health facilities across Khartoum between August and September. It found that roughly three-quarters of families are subsisting on fewer than 1,800 calories per day and that almost all households reported inadequate food supplies.

Health Services Devastated

The assessment found only 43% of the city’s health facilities remain functional. Just 14% of women can access safe childbirth services, and 70% of surveyed clinics reported having no antibiotics on hand. Most functioning facilities lack other essential medicines and supplies.

“The need for humanitarian assistance in Khartoum is urgent,” said Dirk Hanekom, country director for Norwegian Church Aid in Sudan. He warned that if the capital faces such shortages, remote conflict zones are likely in even worse condition.

Escalating Violence and Displacement

Khartoum has been devastated by fighting between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023. The military retook control of parts of Khartoum from the RSF in March, and the capital’s airport reopened for domestic flights in October, but heavy fighting continues elsewhere.

The RSF still controls large areas of western Sudan, including Darfur, after seizing the city of el-Fasher in late October. Satellite imagery shared by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab shows el-Fasher largely emptied, and analysts describe the city as a "ghost town." The Guardian reported briefings to British lawmakers that claimed tens of thousands of deaths following the fall of el-Fasher, with large numbers of residents unaccounted for.

Detentions and Reports of Abuse

In the contested town of Babnusa (West Kordofan), where heavy fighting recently erupted and the RSF claims control, the Sudan Doctors Network reported that RSF forces have detained more than 100 families — including children and pregnant women — and that some detainees have been beaten. The United Nations issued an urgent warning that Kordofan could face another wave of mass atrocities; UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned that history appeared to be repeating itself.

Human Cost

The overall death toll from Sudan’s war is unclear but is estimated at well over 100,000, with nearly 12 million people displaced and more than 24 million facing acute hunger, according to United Nations figures. Humanitarian needs remain enormous and access for aid agencies is severely constrained by insecurity and logistics.

The article also reported statements attributed to U.S. political figures—naming former President Donald Trump and Senator Marco Rubio—about leading diplomatic efforts to end the conflict; these claims were reported in the sources and are not independently verified here.

Peace negotiations remain stalled. The RSF has continued attacks across the country despite announcing a unilateral ceasefire, while the army has demanded the paramilitary force withdraw from captured territories.

Sources: Medical Teams International, Norwegian Church Aid, Sudan Doctors Network, United Nations, Yale Humanitarian Research Lab, The Guardian.