In the shadow of Sudan’s relentless civil war, a humanitarian catastrophe is quietly unfolding for thousands of pregnant women and their newborns. As the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enters its third year, the fall of El Fasher in late October 2025 has triggered a mass exodus, leaving vulnerable women and children at the mercy of violence, starvation, and a collapsing health system.
El Fasher, the last army stronghold in Darfur, fell to the RSF after a devastating 560-day siege. According to the United Nations Population Fund, over 2,000 pregnant women have fled the city since its capture, braving perilous journeys on foot in hopes of finding safety in displacement camps. Their ordeal is emblematic of a broader crisis: Sudan’s war has displaced more than 12 million people, and the United Nations has confirmed famine in parts of the country, with over 21 million facing acute food insecurity as of September 2025.
The collapse of El Fasher set off a chain reaction of violence and deprivation. The RSF’s assault was marked by mass killings, sexual violence, and the destruction of critical infrastructure. Tawila, a nearby town, now hosts more than half a million displaced people, most lacking shelter and basic resources. According to the Associated Press, Nadra Mohamed Ahmed, seven months pregnant, trekked nearly 40 kilometers with her two children, after a projectile killed her sister and destroyed their home. “By the time I arrived here, I had lost a lot of blood,” Ahmed recounted from her tent at the overcrowded al-Dabbah camp in northern Sudan. “I was admitted to the ICU, where I spent a few days and had a blood transfusion.”
Ahmed is not alone. Tasneem Al-Amin from the Sudan Doctors Network told the AP that more than 140 pregnant women have arrived at al-Dabbah camps since El Fasher’s fall, many suffering severe complications like hemorrhaging and miscarriages. The RSF’s rampage through El Fasher included house-to-house killings, sexual assaults, and the storming of Saudi Maternity Hospital—the last functioning maternal health facility in the city—where, according to UN reports, 460 patients and their companions were killed. This attack left more than 6,000 pregnant women without access to life-saving care.
The destruction of health infrastructure has been catastrophic. The United Nations reports that 80% of medical facilities in conflict zones, including El Fasher, have shut down. Anna Mutavati, the UN women’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, told reporters last week that Sudanese women are now forced to give birth on the streets. Doctors Without Borders echoed these concerns, describing “harrowing journeys” on foot across unsafe roads as women seek care at the few remaining facilities—often resulting in delivery complications, miscarriage, or death.
For those who survive the trek, the situation in the camps is dire. The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed that many women arrive with nothing, having lost all possessions along the way. Displacement camps are overcrowded and under-resourced; newborns face malnourishment and inadequate shelter. Sami Aswad, UN Population Fund humanitarian coordinator in Darfur and North Sudan, told the AP that it’s “hard to provide newborns with adequate shelter conditions, adequate clothing, good heating and baby formula, knowing that those babies are already born malnourished.” The UNFPA has facilitated just over 100 deliveries in Tawila and al-Dabbah in recent weeks, a fraction of the need.
Food insecurity compounds the crisis. Nearly 74% of women across Sudan do not meet minimum dietary diversity, limiting nutrient intake and jeopardizing maternal and child health. Tim Shenk of Doctors Without Borders reported that among 66 pregnant or lactating women examined upon arrival in Tawila between October 27 and November 3, the rate of global acute malnutrition was 60%. Many women are foraging for wild leaves and berries to survive, exposing themselves to additional risks of violence, including abduction and sexual assault.
The violence is not confined to Darfur. In the Kordofan region, relentless drone strikes and shelling have displaced tens of thousands and caused at least 1,500 civilian deaths. The SAF recently recaptured Kazqil and Um Dam Haj Ahmed in North Kordofan from the RSF, but fighting continues to rage, with both sides amassing troops and equipment for further battles. The RSF’s offensive in Kordofan coincided with the fall of El Fasher, and the paramilitary group has been accused of burning and burying bodies in El Fasher to hide evidence of mass killings. Satellite imagery from Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab revealed four new locations where bodies are being disposed of, including the University of Alfashir and the Saudi Hospital, sites of reported massacres.
The humanitarian crisis is compounded by the near-collapse of aid operations. Insecurity, restricted access, and severe underfunding have pushed relief efforts to the brink. The United Nations has urgently requested $500 million for humanitarian relief and called for international action against war crimes, including systematic sexual violence and the use of starvation as a weapon. Tom Fletcher, the UN humanitarian chief, visited Port Sudan to negotiate better aid supply with the transitional military government, describing talks as “constructive and positive.”
Despite mounting international pressure, a comprehensive ceasefire remains elusive. The RSF announced it would accept a US-proposed humanitarian ceasefire after capturing El Fasher, but the SAF has refused to agree to a truce along current battle lines. Both sides continue to prepare for further conflict, leaving civilians trapped in the crossfire. The United Nations Human Rights Council has passed a resolution calling for an urgent inquiry into hospital killings and other rights violations in El Fasher by the RSF.
Meanwhile, the suffering on the ground continues unabated. Rasha Ahmed, eight months pregnant, recently arrived in Tawila after her home in El Fasher was shelled and her husband went missing. “I arrived heavily pregnant, and I don’t have anything to help me after giving birth, nothing for my postpartum period,” she told the International Committee of the Red Cross. The RSF, she said, confiscated all their belongings, forcing them to flee with nothing. “They didn’t allow us to take anything—not even bed sheets or covers.”
As the world watches, the fate of Sudan’s pregnant women and their newborns hangs in the balance. Their stories—of courage, loss, and survival—underscore the urgent need for international action to end the violence, restore humanitarian access, and address one of the most devastating aspects of Sudan’s ongoing conflict.
