Khartoum: More than 4,500 people have been displaced in Sudan's North Darfur and Blue Nile states due to worsening security conditions, as reported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
According to Anadolu Agency, in North Darfur, IOM's displacement tracking teams estimated that approximately 1,275 individuals fled the villages of Gorbora and Wadi Arkawi in Um Baru locality between September 3 and 6. These displaced families moved to Karnoy locality in North Darfur, with some crossing the border into neighboring Chad. IOM stated that the situation remains 'tense and highly volatile,' and it continues to closely monitor developments.
Separately, the agency reported that around 3,315 people, equivalent to 663 families, were displaced in a single day from several villages in Geisan locality in southeastern Sudan's Blue Nile state due to escalating insecurity. This displacement was recorded on September 7 from villages such as Abu Shneina, Rabaa, and Wadi Arab, with affected families relocating to Wad al-Mahi locality within Blue Nile state. The latest displacement followed an earlier wave on September 5.
On Sunday, IOM noted that an additional 1,690 people had been displaced from three villages in Blue Nile's Kurmuk locality due to escalating violence. Blue Nile has recently witnessed military escalations amid attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its ally, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), on several areas. On September 4, authorities in Kurmuk reported that the Sudanese army repelled an attack by the RSF and SPLM-N on the Al-Baraka area.
Since late June, villages in North Darfur's Um Baru locality have been subjected to attacks attributed to the RSF, including raids on markets and the burning and looting of villages, according to Sudanese rights groups and organizations. Sudan has been engulfed in a conflict between the army and the RSF since April 2023, resulting in the death of tens of thousands of people and the displacement of approximately 13 million, according to UN and international estimates.