Hunger and violence grip Sudan’s South Kordofan as blockades bite

August 10, 2025 (KADUGLI) – Children are scavenging for scraps of sorghum, and adults are queuing for hours for food in Sudan’s South Kordofan state, where a hunger crisis fueled by warring factions has sparked deadly protests, a crime wave, and accusations that the army is compounding the misery.

In the cities of Kadugli and Dilling, essential supplies have been choked off after armed groups blocked key transport routes. The resulting shortages have driven prices to astronomical levels, leading to a breakdown in security and a dire humanitarian situation that residents and local officials describe as catastrophic.

“I just came back from the queue without getting any sorghum,” Fayza Ajabna told Sudan Tribune after waiting since dawn outside an army-supervised warehouse in Kadugli. “I don’t know what to do to feed my children and the rest of the family. I am at a loss.”

The crisis escalated after the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, cut off roads from the south, while the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) control routes from North Kordofan, effectively besieging the region.

The desperation has fueled deadly violence. In mid-July, mass protests against the food scarcity in Kadugli were met with a lethal response from security and military forces, who used live ammunition to disperse crowds, killing at least one person and injuring dozens, the Sudan Tribune reported.

The shortages have also triggered a surge in violent crime. In the early hours of Saturday morning, well-known merchant Hamed Haroun was killed in his home by an armed group that was looting his personal food stores. Hours later, another citizen was assassinated while returning from a nearby market where residents seek cheaper goods.

Economic collapse

The food shortages have crippled the local economy. A “malwa,” a local measure of sorghum, officially costs 11,000 Sudanese pounds, but many return from queues empty-handed. This has spawned a parallel market where the same amount sells for 35,000 pounds, a merchant told Sudan Tribune.

Prices for other staples have skyrocketed: a kilogram of sugar now costs 45,000 Sudanese pounds, and a single 18-litre container of fuel sells for one million pounds.

A severe cash shortage has forced residents to rely on banking apps, but merchants are reportedly exploiting the situation. One citizen, Ahmed Daldoum, described a common practice to the Sudan Tribune: “You have 100,000 pounds in your Bankak app, and the merchant insists on taking 75,000 for himself and forces you to buy goods from his shop with the rest.”

The healthcare system has also collapsed, with shortages of basic supplies like intravenous fluids, malaria medication, anaesthesia, and even burial shrouds.

Army accused of worsening crisis

Amid the crisis, some activists accuse the Sudanese army and the state government of deliberately worsening the situation.

“The famine in South Kordofan… is a man-made famine orchestrated by the state government and security agencies,” activist Al-Fadil Sanhouri told Sudan Tribune. “What is happening… is not an emergency, but planned.”

Sanhouri alleged that authorities expelled international aid organizations, confiscated 124 tons of food aid intended for 2,250 families, and seized another 800 metric tons from the warehouses of the aid group Samaritan’s Purse, moving the supplies to army stores.

He also claimed that while the army conducted airdrops for its own troops, the flights contained no food or medicine for the civilian population.

Catastrophic outlook

The situation has prompted an exodus of residents to other parts of Sudan or into territories controlled by the SPLM-N. Charity kitchens have shut down due to a lack of supplies, and a cholera outbreak has infected over 180 people and killed nine in the past two weeks, a member of Kadugli’s emergency response room told Sudan Tribune.

State authorities acknowledge the crisis. Abdel Qader Abu Kindi, the Humanitarian Aid Commissioner for South Kordofan, stated that roads were closed by the RSF and the SPLM-N. He told the Sudan Tribune that officials were coordinating with the World Food Programme to deliver 31 tons of aid currently in the city of Kosti.