Over 200,000 displaced across Sudan’s Kordofan region as fighting intensifies, IOM says

August 19, 2026 (KHARTOUM) – More than 200,000 people have been forced from their homes across Sudan’s greater Kordofan region since late 2025, driven by intensifying clashes and targeted strikes on critical infrastructure, the International Organization for Migration reported on Wednesday.

In North Kordofan’s state capital of El Obeid, heavy fighting and drone strikes on the city’s main electrical transformer caused prolonged power outages, paralyzing municipal water pumping systems, hospitals, and telecommunications networks.

The escalating violence has triggered a 25 per cent surge in displacement across Sheikan locality alone over the past eight months, pushing regional displacement figures past the 200,000 mark as families flee collapsing basic services.

Across Sudan, the total number of internally displaced persons has reached 8.6 million, with compounding crises in the Darfur and Blue Nile regions alongside heavy seasonal floods that destroyed over 1,300 homes in North Darfur last week.

IOM Director General Amy Pope warned that families fleeing the violence are facing critical shortages of water, electricity, and medical care, while global shipping delays through the Red Sea and falling shelter funds continue to hamper relief operations.