Khartoum – Al Hamish’s Voice | 20 November 2025
The Sudanese Doctors’ Network announced that 23 children died between 20 October and 20 November in the cities of Dilling and Kadugli in South Kordofan State as a result of severe acute malnutrition and a shortage of essential supplies, amid a blockade imposed on the state that is preventing the entry of food and medicine.
The network explained, citing reports from its field teams, that the deaths represent “a dangerous indicator of the worsening humanitarian disaster” in the region, where the health system has nearly collapsed and humanitarian aid has been unable to reach the area for months.
It warned that the continuation of the blockade “constitutes a clear violation of international humanitarian law and a direct assault on children’s right to life,” noting that thousands of civilians—especially children, pregnant women, and the elderly—are now at risk of famine and malnutrition-related diseases.
The Sudanese Doctors’ Network called on the United Nations, the African Union, and regional and international humanitarian organizations to urgently act to open safe corridors and deliver food and medicine, stressing that “any delay in intervention could lead to a large-scale health catastrophe.”
South Kordofan State has been under a suffocating blockade for more than a year, amid escalating fighting around Dilling and Kadugli, which has cut off medical and food supplies
International organizations including UNICEF and the World Food Programme had previously warned of rising rates of severe acute malnutrition among children in the state due to limited humanitarian access and worsening food insecurity in conflict-affected areas.
