For the second consecutive year, Sudan topped a watchlist of global humanitarian crises prepared by the International Rescue Committee aid agency.

The civil war in the country that erupted between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in April 2023 has wiped out at least 61,000 people, which is considered a conservative estimate. 

The UN says the conflict has driven 11 million people from their homes and unleashed the world's biggest hunger crisis. Nearly 25 million people, which is half of Sudan's population, need aid, according to UN figures.

Syria also re-enters top 5 countries of concern

Conflicts in Gaza and the worsened conditions in West Bank, Myanmar, Syria and South Sudan were next on the list of countries most likely to face a humanitarian crisis in 2025.

Lebanon, Burkina Faso, Haiti, Mali, Somalia, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, Ukraine and Yemen were also among those likely to face deteriorating conditions in the coming year.

'Don't look away from what's happening in Sudan,' warns aid agency

"With millions of people forcibly displaced and even more in humanitarian need, it's more important than ever that the world not forget about this crisis. Don't look away from what’s happening in Sudan," the New York-based organization said in an Instagram post.

Former British politician and CEO of the IRC, David Wright Miliband, said the list was meant to serve as a global call to action.

More than 300 million people need aid

The report "A World Out of Balance" said more than 305 million people across the world need humanitarian aid, with the countries on the list accounting for 82% of them.

"There are more resources to do more good for more people than at any time in history. This makes it all the more bewildering that the gap between humanitarian need and humanitarian funding is also greater than ever," Miliband said in the report.

The crisis in Sudan was the largest since the report began recording conflicts and wars more than 15 years ago. It accounts for 10% of all people in need of aid.

Yesterday,at least 127 people, mostly civilians, were killed in Sudan, with the fighting having turned increasingly bloody as cease-fire efforts remain stalled. 

tg/rm (Reuters)