“We saw planes carrying out bombings from the sky. We took refuge behind the wall of a mosque, while others layid on the ground, not expecting to survive. The area was crowded with elderly people and children. The bombs were falling just metres away from us. No matter how hard I try to describe it, I can’t fully convey the intensity of the situation,” Musa, 28, describes the last moments before fleeing her home in Nyala, in the south-west of Sudan. 

With her twin children, she sought refuge in South Sudan following the escalation of the conflict in April 2023. Upon arriving at the Renk Transit Centre, Musa found herself alone amidst thousands of refugees and returnees, living in communal shelters or makeshift housing. The Centre, built with the support of humanitarian partners, struggles to accommodate the daily arrival of people. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), since the start of the response, about 350.000 refugees from Sudan have crossed into South Sudan, with a high percentage of them crossing via the Renk border.  

“No words can capture the immense suffering that Sudanese and South Sudanese people in war-torn Sudan have endured over the past two years—the extreme hunger, the killings, and the horrific reality of witnessing women being raped and others brutally murdered. We suffer as victims caught between two powerful forces fighting, unleashing their fury on ordinary civilians, including women and children,” she states. 

With millions of internally displaced people and refugees fleeing the conflict in Sudan, the urgent need for adequate support is growing daily in neighbouring countries such as Chad and South Sudan. Although humanitarian organisations, including JRS, provide essential aid—such as rehabilitation and mental health services, educational support, reconciliation services, as well as food and basic non-food items to the most vulnerable—these are often insufficient to meet the increasing needs of families like Musa’s. 

Her twins, growing up in the Transit Centre, have access to child-friendly spaces, but they do not attend school or receive any formal education. “I hope my children will have the chance to go to school, so that one day, they may also serve those in greatest need.” 

Two years on from the escalation of violence, there remains an urgent need for adequate humanitarian assistance and sustainable solutions to address the deepening crisis.  

The international community must reaffirm its solidarity and commitment to humanitarian aid to meet the vast and growing needs of the people of Sudan. A bold diplomatic effort to end the violence and find a path towards lasting peace is essential. 

*name has been changed to protect the identity of the person.