Sudan: MSF launches an emergency response in El Obeid, close to one of the country’s most active frontlines
MSF begins critical support in a city overwhelmed by displacement and cut off by conflict.
As violence continues to spread across Sudan, the Kordofans, in the south-central part of the country, have remained one of the most volatile and active conflict zones. At the same time, it is one of the least accessible regions for humanitarian organizations.
At the heart of this vast area, the city of El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, is a major refuge for displaced families fleeing violence. Living conditions here are precarious: access to healthcare is limited, safe drinking water is scarce and sanitation facilities are insufficient to meet rapidly growing needs.
“With the frontline less than 40 kilometres away, the city continues to receive new arrivals almost daily. People arriving here are deeply scared as the fighting draws closer. Yet they still feel safer than where they came from, where they were exposed to violence, looting and beatings.”
Al Tayeb Mahmoud Mahammed, MSF team leader in El Obeid
In response, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) launched emergency activities in El Obeid in late January. The first phase of this response is focused on improving the water and sanitation services in the city’s main displacement site.
“El Obeid lost many of its original residents but today it hosts tens of thousands of displaced people who settled here in different moments of the war,” says Al Tayeb Mahmoud Mahammed, MSF’s team leader in El Obeid. “With the frontline less than 40 kilometres away, the city continues to receive new arrivals almost daily. People arriving here are deeply scared as the fighting draws closer. Yet they still feel safer than where they came from, where they were exposed to violence, looting and beatings.”
Al-Mina Al-Muwahad, the main displacement site in El Obeid, hosts approximately 25,000 people according to MSF’s assessment. Our teams report an alarming lack of services for the number of people living at the site.
There are severely inadequate sanitation services, with 500 people sharing one latrine at times. There is also limited access to safe drinking water, with only three litres per person per day. This significantly increases the risk of disease outbreaks, placing children, pregnant women and older adults at heightened risk.
“This response is a critical step, but far more assistance is urgently needed to prevent further loss of life and degradation of dignity.”
Marta Cazorla, MSF head of operations in eastern Sudan
MSF is strengthening water and sanitation services in the camp by constructing additional latrines, installing water bladders and supporting community-based disease and nutrition surveillance through Ministry of Health community health volunteers. As people’s needs far exceed the capacity of an already fragile health system, MSF is coordinating with local authorities to support the provision of healthcare activities in the camp as well as at El Obeid teaching hospital.
MSF’s current response follows months of engagement with local and federal authorities to gain access to the city. In July 2025, we launched a remote response to support with trainings and technical advice for the Ministry of Health during a cholera outbreak. In September 2025, we found major humanitarian needs among the community, as well as cases of measles and cholera, during an assessment carried out on site.
“As fighting continues and displacement rises, humanitarian needs across Sudan remain immense and largely unmet,” says Marta Cazorla, MSF head of operations in eastern Sudan. “We are grateful to be finally present and operating in El Obeid, something that was not possible for the larger part of the conflict due to access constraints.”
“This response is a critical step, but far more assistance is urgently needed to prevent further loss of life and degradation of dignity,” says Cazorla. “MSF teams are currently ready and supplies are prepared to expand the response in El Obeid, as well as to assess and respond in other areas across the Kordofans as needs evolve and access allows. Right now, for example, we have teams ready to provide medical care in South Kordofan.”
According to the International Organization for Migration, since the conflict in Sudan began on April 15, 2023, more than 15 million people have been forced from their homes. This includes11.5 million displaced within Sudan and approximately 4 million who fled across borders at the peak of the crisis. MSF runs or supports 20 hospitals and 16 healthcare centres across the country. Our teams provide surgical care, wound management, physiotherapy, maternity, nutrition and pediatric services, general healthcare, routine and reactive vaccination campaigns and mental health support in eight of Sudan’s 18 states.
