HRC has a moral and political responsibility to respond proportionately to the crisis in Sudan

My name is Manal Alawal, I am a Sudanese woman human rights defender from the Kordofan region.

The recent surge of violence in North, West, and South Kordofan has intensified a humanitarian catastrophe, but for women and girls, the crisis cuts even deeper. As homes are burned and entire communities displaced, thousands face heightened risks of sexual violence, forced marriage, and life-threatening shortages of reproductive health care. The hunger crisis in South Kordofan and the Nuba Mountains has now reached an acute level. Approximately half of Kadugli’s population has left the city, while thousands remain stranded due to road insecurity and high transportation costs. The majority of those trapped are female-headed households, who are disproportionately affected by rising prices and limited access to food. The displaced face new hardships as they search for food in the war-torn Kordofan region, where fighting rages on every front and total closure is enforced by the various competing forces. This leaves the population of South Kordofan—especially women—without options, surrounded by death and hunger, as all routes to safer places, whether within or outside the country, are blocked.

The stories of women and girls in Kordofan are not statistics. They are survivors of massacres, witnesses to brutality, and caretakers amid chaos. As the crisis deepens, the resilience of Kadugli’s women and girls stands as a testament to courage amidst deprivation. Each day, their struggle for sustenance and safety is a silent call to the world’s conscience—a plea for urgent humanitarian intervention and lasting peace. Without decisive action, the specter of famine will continue to cast its shadow over South Kordofan, threatening to erase fragile hopes for recovery. The stories emerging from Kadugli are a stark reminder: the time to act is now, before desperation becomes the city’s only option.

We call on the Council to renew the Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan for at least two years. The Council has a moral and political responsibility to respond proportionately to the crisis in Sudan. The people of Sudan must not be victims of the UN‘s funding crisis. We urge States to pay their contributions to the UN in full and on time to mitigate the liquidity crisis and allow the Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan, other independent investigations, and human rights bodies and mechanisms to fulfil their respective mandates, including by delivering outcomes and reports requested by intergovernmental bodies such as the Human Rights Council.

We call on States to urge the warring parties to ensure an immediate ceasefire and protect civilians, health workers and health facilities; and open safe humanitarian corridors.

We call on humanitarian agencies to support local women’s networks already responding on the ground and prioritise safe corridors for women-led households, and ensure emergency access to maternal and reproductive healthcare amid the collapse of the health system.  

We call on donors to scale up funding for gender-focused responses across Sudan, especially for community kitchens, healthcare, and protection.