14 million children in Sudan in "dire need" of humanitarian support

Khartoum: Fourteen million children are in “dire need” of humanitarian support in Sudan, the United Nations children’s agency warned on Friday, as a deadly conflict in the country deepens its hunger crisis, CNN reported.

"The numbers are staggering. Almost 14 million children — a number roughly equivalent to every single child in Colombia, France, Germany, or Thailand — are in dire need of humanitarian support,” UNICEF deputy executive director Ted Chaiban said in a briefing on Friday.

Over 1.7 million children in Sudan have been forced out of their homes facing risks of hunger, disease, violence, and family separation, he said.

This is in addition to the 1.9 million children, who were already displaced in Sudan before the latest crisis, CNN reported.

“Three million children under five are malnourished with 700,000 at risk of severe acute malnutrition and mortality. 1.7 million children under the age of one are at risk of missing critical vaccinations, raising the risk of disease outbreaks,” Chaiban added.

Since the Sudan conflict began in mid-April, at least 435 children have been killed and more than 2,025 injured, according to UNICEF, CNN reported.

Over 20 million people in Sudan face severe hunger, a figure that has nearly doubled since last year, the UN warned on Thursday.

War broke out between the army and the Rapid Support Forces on April 15. The conflict has since forced some 3.5 million people to flee their homes, including 844,000 who have gone to neighbouring countries in search of safety, according to the United Nations.