Sudan conflict: What is happening right now (what you need to know)

Updated April 2026: The Sudan crisis is now in its third year. Widespread displacement and ongoing conflict have affected millions of people across the country. Families have been forced to flee their homes, and many children have lost access to education, healthcare and safety.

This humanitarian crisis continues to grow, creating urgent needs for food, shelter and protection.

You can help support families and children in Sudan by providing life-saving assistance. Donate now to the Sudan crisis and protect children and families in need.

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Key facts about the Sudan crisis

• The current Sudan conflict has been ongoing since April 2023.
• More than 13 million people have been displaced from their homes.
• Over 42,000 children have been separated from their families.
• Millions of families are living on one meal a day or less.

Sudan is facing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Since armed clashes erupted in Khartoum in April 2023, the conflict has spiralled into a devastating civil war. Since then, over 13 million people have been forcibly displaced, with almost 4 million people fleeing to neighbouring countries in search of safety.

Today, Sudan has the largest and fastest-growing displacement crisis in the world and over 30.4 million people in humanitarian need.

Here are answers to some of the key questions about the crisis in Sudan.

1. What is happening in Sudan?

1. What caused the Sudan conflict?

1. How is the Sudan conflict affecting children and their families?

1. What is World Vision doing in Sudan?

1. How can Canadians help Sudan in 2026?

What is happening in Sudan right now?

The most recent conflict in Sudan largely stems from a broken transition to democratic governance as rival factions battle for control of the country.

Since April 2023, violence has overtaken Khartoum and other parts of the country, with over 150,000 people dying in the conflict. The humanitarian toll is staggering. Living conditions in Sudan are devastating, with public infrastructure like hospitals and schools destroyed.

Over 24 million people in the country are facing acute food insecurity because of famine-like conditions. Reports from the United Nations reveal over 900 cases of child rights’ violations, from sexual violence to forced military recruitment, between June and December 2024 alone.

Neighbouring countries such as Egypt, Chad and South Sudan have welcomed 4 million Sudanese refugees fleeing conflict, most of whom are women and children. However, these countries lack the infrastructure necessary to sustain care for the millions of people pouring in.

There are also concerns about Canada’s indirect involvement. While Canada has an active arms embargo against Sudan, a recent investigation reveals that Canadian-made arms exports are being funnelled into Sudan through third-parties, fuelling the crisis.

• Where the guns come from: Canadian-made weapons in the Sudan conflict. How are Canadian-made weapons reaching Sudan? And, more importantly, what can be done to prevent it from happening.

What caused the Sudan conflict?

Political tension in Sudan has been ongoing since 1989. Continued conflict over the structure and direction of Sudan’s government resulted in a former long-standing president being ousted from leadership in a 2019 coup.

The current conflict in Sudan has entered its third year due to the ongoing political tension between warring parties. Disagreements by both leaders over the direction of civilian rule has escalated into the devastating violence seen today in the news.

The tensions came to a climax in April 2023, when violence broke out between the two sides in Khartoum, the country’s capital.

• Timeline of the Sudan humanitarian crisis: View an updated timeline of key events of the Sudan crisis, starting from 1989 and continuing to 2026.

How is the Sudan conflict affecting children and their families?

Children remain the most impacted by the conflict. Escalated violence like we are seeing in Sudan forces families to flee, leaving women and children especially vulnerable to gender-based violence.

Humanitarian aid is being blocked by parties, worsening already-limited access to food, water and medical care

Before the conflict began, almost 16 million people—about one-third of the country’s population—were already dependent on humanitarian agencies such as World Vision for support and survival. This number included about four million children under the age of five, who already were facing severe malnutrition as part of the ongoing hunger crisis happening across eastern Africa.

Today, over 770,000 children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition, living in areas cut off from humanitarian relief. Without peace, many more innocent children will go hungry, with devastating consequences.

• Donate life-saving food to children in Sudan: An estimated 70 per cent of Sudan's population live below the international poverty line of $2.15 per day. Help donate emergency food to those most impacted by the Sudan conflict.

What is World Vision doing in Sudan?

World Vision and World Vision Canada continues to respond in Sudan and in the surrounding areas of Uganda, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Chad under the Sudan Crisis and Emergency Response to support Sudanese people who have been displaced by the protracted crisis.

Since the conflict began in 2023, we have reached over 4 million people with child protection services, access to clean water and sanitation, food and cash assistance, and life-saving health and nutrition interventions.

World Vision has been working in Sudan since 1983, closing in 1988 and resuming operations in 2004 in response to the Darfur crisis. Headquartered in Khartoum, World Vision has been able to run relief, recovery and development programs that benefit more than 1.5 million people directly and indirectly, thanks to partnership with the Government of Canada and individual Canadian donors. As of July 2025, World Vision’s response during the Sudan crisis includes:

• 883,082 people reached with food assistance.

• 393,261 people with access to safe water.

• 758,018 people provided with health services.

• 207,640 children supported through child protection programmes

Learn more about World Vision’s history and work in Sudan.

How can Canadians help children in Sudan in 2026?

Children in Sudan are facing hunger, violence, and displacement on a massive scale. The crisis is so vast that international solidarity is essential.

While frontline responders work inside Sudan and in neighbouring countries, Canadians have a role to play in shaping how our country engages with the crisis—through action or through silence.

Here are some concrete ways you can get involved:

Donate to Sudan

• Provide life-saving food and support for vulnerable families and children. Thanks to donations from the World Food Programme, your gift mulitplies up to 7X in value.

Advocate for children

• Call on our government to make laws around Canadian arms exports tighter so Canadian-made products aren’t harming children.

Add your voice

• Call 1-877-25-RESPOND (1-877-257-3776) to leave a message of solidarity and join the chorus of Canadians calling on lawmakers to take action on humanitarian aid for Sudan today.