Libya: IRC launches emergency response for nearly 100,000 Sudanese refugees
August 11, 2024 (TRIPOLI) – The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has launched an emergency response amid warning of urgent and escalating humanitarian needs for almost 100,000 Sudanese refugees arriving in Libya after fleeing fighting.
The influx, the aid agency said, has placed additional pressure on an already strained service delivery landscape, and an urgent scale up in support is needed.
It further said 73% of the refugees traveled directly from Sudan through the desert in the Al Kufra region (south east Libya), whilst others arrived via Chad or Egypt.
Many are hoping for pathways out of Libya, as local resources are severely strained.
Since the conflict in Sudan started in April last year, over 96,000 Sudanese refugees have reportedly arrived in Libya. In addition, however, an average of 2,500 to 3,000 refugees from Sudan are expected to arrive every day in the coming months.
“People from Sudan have faced unimaginable trauma whilst fleeing conflict. They arrive in southern Libya severely traumatized, malnourished and often needing medical care. Our teams have reported that large numbers of families, along with unaccompanied children and survivors of gender-based violence, are arriving in Libya. This situation underscores the urgent need for a comprehensive protection response,” said Jared Rowell, the Country Director for IRC Libya.
Conflict erupted across multiple cities in Sudan in April 2023, displacing over 12 million people from their homes both within Sudan and across borders to various countries including Libya, Chad, South Sudan and Ethiopia, aid agencies say.
Last week, an assessment by the Famine Review Committee (FRC) of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) noted that famine conditions are prevalent in parts of North Darfur, including the Zamzam camp in El Fasher.
The Zamzam Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp, south of El Fasher town is one of the largest IDP camps with an estimated population of at least 500,000.
The situation has been worsened by the escalating violence in Sudan, which has been persisting for over 15 months now, severely impeding humanitarian access.
“The IRC has been supporting Sudanese refugees arriving in Libya, particularly in the western, southern and eastern regions. Over the past six months, we have supported more than 17,000 Sudanese individuals, 58% of whom are women and girls, with medical services through our mobile health teams,” Rowell said, citing services such as emergency obstetric and newborn care to vulnerable women, girls and newborns.
“We have also supplied critical items such as personal hygiene products and offered comprehensive protection services, including Gender-Based Violence (GBV) response services and psychosocial support activities,” stressed the IRC Country Director.
Escalating conflict across Sudan, especially in parts of northern Darfur where intense fighting has destroyed large swathes of houses and infrastructure and driven hundreds of thousands into famine conditions, has forced people to flee their homes. Paired with poor conditions for refugees in Chad, more Sudanese are expected to migrate to Libya directly as well as onward from Chadian refugee camps.
The UN expects that the Sudanese population in Libya will rise to nearly 150,000 by the end of 2024.
Meanwhile, IRC urged the international community to provide immediate and increased aid to address the urgent needs of these vulnerable populations, saying without swift and comprehensive assistance, including additional funding to enable an effective response, the living conditions for Sudanese refugees in Libya will continue to deteriorate, exacerbating an already dire humanitarian situation.
It also urged immediate ceasefire in Sudan in order to curtail the rapidly growing humanitarian crisis.
(ST)