Insecurity displaces 2,800 people in single day in Sudan’s Blue Nile: UN migration agency

Some 2,800 people fled 10 villages in Sudan‘s southeastern Blue Nile State in a single day amid deteriorating security, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Sunday.

In a statement, the UN agency said its field teams estimated that 560 households, comprising 2,800 people, had been displaced from several villages in Wad al-Mahi locality and moved to Al-Roseires locality within Blue Nile State.

The affected villages were Miri, Jabal Nimr, Abu Qudaf, Bashkarkat, Ab Jankour, Makla, Matangiya, Jabal al-Nour, Menza and Manshiling, it said.

The situation remains “tense and volatile,” the agency said, adding that it was closely monitoring developments.

On Thursday, IOM reported that another 7,000 people, comprising 1,400 households, had fled four villages in Wad al-Mahi in a single day because of insecurity.

Last month, the UN agency said that 99,277 people had been displaced in Blue Nile state between Jan. 11 and Aug. 23 this year.

The state has witnessed a military escalation in recent days as the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North launched attacks on several areas.

Sudan’s humanitarian crisis has deepened amid the war between the army and the RSF, which began in April 2023 following a dispute over unifying the military.

The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced approximately 13 million, according to UN and international estimates.