Conflict and drought push Sudan closer to famine, monitor warns

A food security monitor has warned that conflict and drought are increasing the risk of famine in Sudan, as an El Nino-induced drought affects roughly half the country alongside an ongoing war that has continued for three years.

The combination of prolonged conflict and severe weather conditions is compounding humanitarian pressures in Sudan, with large swaths of the population facing the dual strain of displacement and disrupted access to food caused by drought.

The three-year war in Sudan has already caused significant displacement and strained the country's ability to respond to humanitarian needs, and the added impact of drought is now intensifying concerns about the risk of famine conditions taking hold.

Specific regions most acutely affected by the drought, as well as the precise scale of the population at risk, were not detailed at length in available reporting, though the monitor's warning points to roughly half of the country being affected by the dry conditions.

Humanitarian organizations have repeatedly flagged Sudan as facing one of the world's most severe food crises amid the continuing conflict, and this latest warning adds to the body of assessments tracking the deteriorating situation.

It remains unclear what additional humanitarian response, if any, is being planned in light of the monitor's warning about the increased famine risk.