By John Jessup, CBN News
After more than three years of bloodshed, the African nation of Sudan remains ripped part by violence, displacement, and severe famine.
The civil war has forced up to 14 million people from their homes.
Cities lie in ruins. And accusations of genocide and war crimes continue to mount against the warring factions inside what aid organisations and the United Nations characterise as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
During a recent reporting trip to Sudan, US Christian broadcaster CBN News obtained rare access to areas controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces, offering a first-hand look at the devastation that spans the country.
THE CAPITAL KHARTOUM A SHATTERED CITY
The capital Khartoum was once known for its bustling streets and one of Africa’s most recognisable skylines.
It now stands hollowed out by war. Burned-out buildings line nearly-deserted roads.
Bullet holes scar homes, businesses and government offices.
Entire neighbourhoods have been abandoned.
THE COMPLEX POWER STRUGGLE BEHIND THE DEVASTATION
The destruction reflects a complex power struggle involving political, ethnic, religious, and international interests.
“You have an amalgam — a very complex amalgam — of different groups,” said Ralf Krüger, former Africa bureau chief for German news agency DPA.
“You have mercenaries. You have the Russians, the former Wagner Group.”
“They are in the country because of the gold mines.”
SUDAN DIVIDED BETWEEN WARRING MILITARY FORCES
Sudan’s current conflict traces back to the late 2018 and 2019 anti-government protests over the economy under the 30-year rule of President Omar al-Bashir.
Hopes for democracy were shattered in April 2023 when tensions between military factions erupted into civil war in the capital city.
Today, Sudan is effectively divided.
The Sudanese Armed Forces control much of the east, while the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, known as the RSF, have established influence and a parallel government across large swathes of the western region.
INTERNATIONAL TROOPS ACCUSE BOTH SIDES OF WAR CRIMES
The fighting has drawn in foreign interests from countries providing economic, political and, in some cases, military support.
That includes Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia, China, Turkey, Colombia, United Arab Emirates and some of Sudan’s neighbors in East Africa.
International organisations accuse both sides of committing war crimes.
The United States and the United Nations have gone further, accusing the RSF of genocide against civilians.
THE OFFICIAL LINE OF THE GOVERNMENT
“We cannot compare a national institution with a militia,” said Sulaima Ishaq al-Khalifa of Sudan’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Welfare, defending the government forces.
“The crimes against civilians are more intensive, and they are recording that.”
They [RSF] record their crimes and are very proud of what they have been doing.”
According to humanitarian agencies, millions of Sudanese have fled to border countries including South Sudan, Egypt, Libya and Chad.
However, the vast majority remain displaced within Sudan itself, living in overcrowded camps with limited food, sanitation, and medical care.
THE PLIGHT OF ONE OF THE MILLIONS DISPLACED BY THE WAR
During a visit to one displacement camp in Al Dabbah in northern Sudan, roughly five hours from Khartoum, a mother named Entssar Abdalla Ahmed invited CBN News into the one-room tent she now shares with her two children.
Originally from El Fasher in western Sudan, she fled after an RSF massacre at the Zamzam displacement camp.
“I walked nearly 800 kilometres,” she said through an Arabic interpreter who translated her responses to English.
“This is a very, very sad crisis for Sudanese women,” the interpreter added.
MOTHER BREAKS DOWN RECALLING HER HORRIFIC TREATMENT
The mother broke down while recounting her escape.
“They stole her phone and her money,” the interpreter explained. “They cut her clothes and left her naked.”
Her testimony mirrors findings documented in a United Nations report, published in February, detailing allegations of torture, forced starvation, executions, and widespread violence committed during the conflict.
Investigators say women and children — including victims as young as one year old — have been subjected to abuse.
SHOCKING CONDITIONS INSIDE DISPLACEMENT CAMPS
Conditions inside the camps remain dire.
Residents often receive only one meal a day for six days each week.
The camp in Al Dabbah has 200 bathrooms to serve roughly 25,000 people.
Of the 9,500 children who live in the camp, there’s only enough desks for 450 kids to attend school.
MILITARY APPOINTED PRIME MINISTER CLAIMS GOVERNMENT HAS “WON THE WAR”
Before the war, Sudan already faced a major displacement crisis, with an estimated five million people forced from their homes.
That number has now more than doubled to approximately 12 to 14 million — many of them children whose lives have been entirely spent within displacement camps.
While in Sudan, CBN News met with aid groups, activists, and top government leaders, including Sudan’s military-appointed prime minister, Kamil Idris.
He insisted the Sudanese Armed Forces had “won” the war despite ongoing fighting.
“We can say with total confidence that we have won this war,” Idris said while declaring 2026 will be a year of peace,
“I am here to help my people, to support this great nation and establish durable peace and security,” he added.
KHARTOUM’S NEW NORMAL: BLACKOUTS, WATER SHORTAGES AND LAND MINES
During the trip, organised by the One Campaign, CBN News and other foreign journalists traveled only within SAF-controlled territory.
Government officials attempted to closely manage itineraries and interviews in an effort to project legitimacy and to help shape international perceptions of the conflict.
Even as some residents slowly return to Khartoum, daily life remains unstable due to frequent power outages, water shortages, and unexploded land mines scattered throughout the city.
“I’M HERE BECAUSE I BELIEVE BEING WITH THE PEOPLE GIVES ME HOPE”
Those who have stayed behind to support their communities are considering their next steps.
“I was even planning to leave when the war stops,” said artist and activist Duaa Tariq, who runs Emergency Reponse Rooms.
“Now I’m here because I believe being with the people gives me hope.”
“Hundreds of people around me are actively trying every day.”
SUDAN’S HUGE CRISIS OVERSHADOWED BY OTHER CONFLICTS
Aid workers warn that Sudan’s crisis remains largely obscured because global attention is directed toward conflicts elsewhere.
“Fifty million people are here. Twenty-five million are in humanitarian need,” said Elizabeth Hoffman of the One Campaign which focuses on improving economic and health conidtions in Africa.
“But because of everything else going on in the world — Iran, Ukraine, Gaza, and politics in the United States — Sudan often falls below the headlines,” she explained.
“It feels like a forgotten crisis.”
“WE NEED SAFETY, PEACE AND A HOME”
For displaced families like Entssar Abdalla Ahmed’s, the hope remains painfully simple: safety, peace, and a return home.
“Our message to the world,” she said through her interpreter, “is that we need to be safe. We need peace. We need to go back home.”
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