Kadugli: Hundreds of people were displaced on Friday alone from Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan State in southern Sudan, due to worsening insecurity amid escalating attacks by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

According to Anadolu Agency, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that field teams from the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) estimated on December 5 that between 350 and 450 individuals were displaced from Kadugli in South Kordofan as a result of deteriorating security conditions. The statement highlighted that these displaced people fled to various locations in Abu Zabad in West Kordofan and Sheikan in North Kordofan.

Kadugli has been under siege by both the RSF and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu since the early months of the war. This siege has been accompanied by repeated artillery and drone attacks. Although there are no official statistics on Kadugli's population, the city has experienced several waves of displacement to surrounding areas over time.

UN estimates indicate that more than 41,000 people have fled escalating violence in North and South Kordofan states during the past month. On Friday, UNICEF representative in Sudan, Sheldon Yett, stated that famine has been confirmed in Kadugli, South Kordofan.

In recent weeks, the Kordofan states-North, West, and South-have witnessed fierce fighting between the army and the RSF, prompting tens of thousands of people to flee. Of Sudan's 18 states, the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west, except for some northern parts of North Darfur, which remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states in the south, north, east, and center, including the capital Khartoum.

The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has resulted in the deaths of thousands and the displacement of millions.