a journey into a forgotten
conflict in Sudan a civil war has been
raging for almost a year now 10 million
people are fleeing the violence more
than in any other crisis
worldwide of these a quarter of a
million internally displaced persons
have found refuge in the nuba
mountains since the war broke out it has
been almost impossible to report from
Sudan visas are not granted to foreign
journalists but with the help of an aid
organization we were able to gain access
we're here to talk to people whose
stories would otherwise not be
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heard my name is Namar Isel I'm a nurse
I fled from the war in
my name is shd I was in K when we were
attacked and my children were
murdered my name is Hannah hamoda I fled
after having lost my two children and
one of my
legs these women have survived the
horrors of bombing destruction rape and
displacement but they refus to give
up
we're traveling in a United Nations
plane from the south Sudanese capital of
Juba towards the Sudanese border thank
you upon arrival in yida we continue by
car a couple of hours later we prepare
to cross the border into Sudan the only
indication of its existence is a red
ribbon we're headed to the nuba
mountains in the state of South cofan in
the south of Sudan the region is
controlled by the rebels of the spmn for
nearly four decades they've been
fighting against the Sudanese central
government the rebels are demanding more
self-determination and a secular
self-government they say that for too
long their brothers the Nubians have
been discriminated against and oppressed
by the Elites in the capital katum
because of their religion and
ethnicity the region has been neglected
lacking roads medical staff humanitarian
Aid and food International NOS are only
allowed to operate with permission from
katum and the war has now almost
completely cut off the already
precarious flow of humanitarian
Aid we've reached the agiri camp around
10,000 people live here most of them
fled from katum and the surrounding area
when fighting broke out between the
Sudanese Army and the
paramilitaries Hanah hamura is one of
them when the bomb hit her house I
didn't immediately lose my leg or feel
that it was severed my body just went
completely
numb she was taken to hospital and
operated on immediately when she woke up
after her leg had been amputated the
doctors told her that she had also lost
her two sons awatif and abar who were
only 2 and four years
old my children were adorable we used to
play a lot together but now God has
taken them from me and I leave it to God
to judge the government I don't blame
God she says the bomb dropped on her
house came from the Sudanese Army she
and her two older children managed to
flee here to the nuba
mountains and even with hardly anything
to eat and a Long Way to the closest
water pump here they're
safe safe from daily air strikes
shelling and
gunfire a brutal power struggle is
playing out in Africa's thirdd largest
country between Army Chief and deao
president abdal fatak aloran on the one
hand and his former deputy and leader of
the paramilitary rapid support forces
Muhammad hamand [ __ ] known as HTI on the
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other they have been fighting constantly
since April last year neither side
wanting to give in so far all
International attempts at mediation for
a ceasefire have
failed Namar is was also forced to flee
she was working as a nurse in Kum when
the bombs began raining down around her
as she was leaving the city she heard
that the paramilitaries were
specifically going after
women I was very scared
because people were being robbed on the
way and then there was the danger of
being raped a few of us about three or
four managed to get out but some stayed
behind my father and my brother are
still
missing she was lucky and made it
unharmed to the nuba mountains where
relatives took her in after a month she
found a job in the Region's only
hospital since the War Began
malnourished children have been arriving
here in growing number
for months Namar has been waiting for
fresh supplies of
medicine we have some medication but not
nearly
enough we lack important painkillers and
antibiotics so we must refer patients
with serious illnesses to hospitals in
other
regions she's angry at the two generals
who are making the people pay the price
for their power
struggle and Al Han are fighting each
other but it's the people who are
suffering they have nothing
left I think neither one is fit to rule
Sudan someone else should lead this
country despite or maybe even because of
the challenges she's faced Namar doesn't
want to return to Kum whenever the war
ends when I arrived here and started
working I realized that people here need
my help much more than the people in
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[Applause]
like Namar around a quarter of a million
people have fled to the nuba mountains
since the war broke out this church has
played a central role in getting people
to safety many in the community say that
without the help of Pastor musaki they
wouldn't be here today A few weeks after
the fighting began he organized 23 buses
to bring 1500 people from carum to the
mountains our people scattered our
people died our people they were not uh
they were not having food the bus carry
more than the number that he supposed to
carry because people are running from
there and they were not able to stay
there so we just fill the bus and they
face a lot of uh hunger on the way many
were taken in by relatives or other
church members it's a tight-nit
community where people share what little
they have this is not a permanent
solution
after nearly a year of fighting many
people are looking to the International
Community as a Last Hope of ending the
war the countries those who are more
strong to put pressure on the government
of Sudan so that they can solve the
problem can stop the war but if they are
not able to to talk to the IM and ban to
stop this war people will still
suffering
it may seem peaceful in this region but
war is Raging on its northern border the
Sudanese Army is only 7 km away in the
town of
kadugli We aren't allowed any closer
instead the rebels show us their
captured military equipment all their
weapons come from the enemy General eek
TFI tells
me look around at all the suffering
there is no Health Care no education no
food we have told the Sudanese
government to improve conditions they
haven't done anything that's why we will
keep fighting until they are removed
from
Power the civilians here seem to support
them but those civilians are also the
ones who are getting caught between the
fronts in October 2023 soldiers of the
Sudanese Army invaded the village of K
bed and began killing people
indiscriminately according to survivors
we spoke to shad hamdan and her family
were at home when the soldiers
attacked these men just showed up first
they killed my husband then my children
I was afraid that they would kill me too
and I started screaming they pushed me
down and began raping me as soon as one
had finished the next one came they said
today we're going to show you you Rebel
they told me that this is the way they
would kill
me but she survived and made it to this
improvised Camp around 5,000 people fled
here from Kar many of the women have
suffered similar
violence with no NOS active in the area
a single donation of plastic tarp is all
that has made it through and there is
not enough to go around for everyone in
need sick injured and traumatized as
people are left to fend for
themselves I had so many doubts I no
longer saw any point in living I can't
offer my surviving daughters a good
education or anything else I can't even
manage to give them enough food and they
don't even want to eat they just sit
there unable to do anything lost in
their own
thoughts every few days a group of men
risk their lives by colle ing what
little food they can from the fields
around cbear and distributing it among
the
residents without their help her family
would starve says shadya but this small
pot has to feed 15 people and her
continuous struggle having to act as a
mother and provider leaves her no time
to process what she has been
through I want to create a home for my
children so that they are not constantly
reminded of what happened to them
I hope that they can grow up well
despite
everything back at the Airi Camp Hanah
hamoda sets off on the excruciating
track to the water
pump the round trip takes about an hour
and a half and without her friends
accompanying her it would be too
hard they give me the feeling that I
haven't lost everything they encourage
me every day and tell me that my life
still has value that I can't give
up Hanah hamud also has two surviving
daughters and they are the ones who give
her the strength to carry on I do now
struggle so that I may make them
medicate so that I may make them be
happy they should not feel that I am I
we don't have a complete mother that is
why I'm practiced to do very every
activities around the world so that I L
them to say that we lost our mom this
stoic resilience unites the women the
strong will to see their children grow
up well despite the war to carry on no
matter what and to one day rebuild their
country