Increased Sudan fighting ups civilian casualties, displacement: UN

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- UN humanitarians said Tuesday they are deeply alarmed by escalating fighting at several Sudan locations that have triggered a spike in civilian casualties and displacement.

"At least 19 civilians were killed during a ground assault in the Jarjira area of North Darfur state yesterday," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. "Another 10 civilians were reportedly killed and nine injured in a drone attack in Sinja, the state capital of Sennar state, yesterday, according to the Sudan Doctors Network."

The International Organization for Migration estimated that on Friday, more than 8,000 people were displaced from villages in the locality of Kernoi in North Darfur state, with some fleeing within the state and others crossing into Chad.

The UN Children's Fund reported a deepening nutrition emergency in North Darfur. The fund conducted a survey last month in the localities of At Tina, Um Baru and Kernoi, which showed acute malnutrition levels far exceeding the World Health Organization emergency thresholds of 15 percent. Um Baru had the highest Global Acute Malnutrition rate of 53 percent.

OCHA called on all parties to immediately protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, respect international humanitarian law, and enable rapid, safe, unhindered and sustained humanitarian access, while urging donors to scale up funding to deliver life-saving assistance urgently.

The humanitarian office said that in South Sudan, a temporary home to 600,000 refugees from Sudan, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners on Tuesday launched in Juba the 2026 appeal for 1.5 billion U.S. dollars to help 4.3 million people.

OCHA said the plan seeks the funds to deliver life-saving assistance and protection in one of the world's most complex humanitarian crises. The immediate priority is 1 billion dollars to reach 4 million people. An estimated 10 million people are expected to need humanitarian aid.

The office reported that conflict, climate shocks, disease outbreaks, deepening economic challenges, and the spillover effects of the crisis in Sudan continue to drive humanitarian needs in South Sudan. More than 7.5 million people are projected to face crisis or worse levels of food insecurity during the lean season from April to July. ■