IPC Confirms Famine in El-Fasher, Kadugli

The UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has confirmed famine in el-Fasher (Darfur) and Kadugli (South Kordofan) based on its September 2025 analysis, and warned about roughly 20 other areas at risk. Both locations endured prolonged sieges by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF); el-Fasher was seized after about an 18-month siege last week, cutting off supplies and producing extreme malnutrition with aid groups reporting emaciated children and community food sites targeted. Witnesses and aid agencies have reported mass killings, sexual violence and large-scale attacks since el-Fasher fell, and the International Criminal Court and relief organizations say they are collecting evidence amid communications blackouts. The IPC estimates about 21.2 million people face high levels of acute food insecurity nationwide, including roughly 375,000 in catastrophic (Phase 5) famine conditions. It warns famine is likely to persist into early 2026 without improved access and aid; the wider war between Sudan’s military and the RSF since April 2023 has displaced more than 14 million people and killed over 40,000, producing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.