News & Updates
Check out the latest from Sudan and our movement
The veil of silence around Sudan’s nightmare war
Nearly two and a half years into the world’s largest humanitarian emergency, the invisibility around Sudan’s needless suffering is more entrenched than ever.
Nearly two and a half years into the world’s largest humanitarian emergency, the veil of silence and invisibility around Sudan’s needless suffering is more entrenched than ever.
•••••
Rachid had fled her neighborhood in Nyala, Darfur for another once already since the war in Sudan began in April 2023. With the genocidal Rapid Support Forces (RSF) —an Arab supremacist paramilitary group that has plagued the country for years— on the verge of taking over the country’s second largest city, she decided it was time to flee to the border with South Sudan.
“I don’t remember what day I ran,” Rachid says. “I thought to be a woman when the janjaweed (RSF) come will mean evil done upon me. My friend was raped by them. They do this to the black women. They hate us.”
It was mid-October 2023. Weeks of brutal combat between the RSF and national army had turned swaths of Nyala into a ghost town. Areas under RSF occupation were being looted and terrified citizens were being sexually assaulted, tortured, and executed by the notorious paramilitaries. Rachid said the army made no effort to protect citizens. “Running west to Chad was no good because the janjaweed were everywhere,” Rachid describes. “Running to South Sudan was a little safer. Less janjaweed.”
It took Rachid nine days to reach South Sudan. She somehow managed to avoid the RSF units swarming the region. By the end of October, the RSF had overrun all of Nyala and most of western Sudan.
Rachid’s story is shared by countless other Sudanese. There is still no end in sight for the war between Sudan’s ruthless national army and the barbaric Rapid Support Forces. The statistics are impossible to fathom. Nearly 25 million Sudanese —half the country— are in need of emergency food assistance. Over 15 million are displaced in Sudan’s borders or have fled the country altogether. No one knows the true death toll, but 185,000+ people have likely been killed by violence, starvation, and disease outbreaks, a conservative estimate based on the little data available. Even this is likely a severe undercount. As refugees pour into neighboring countries, they bring with them stories of mass graves, neighborhoods leveled and villages massacred, and soldiers and militias torturing and executing unarmed civilians viewed as “belonging to the other side.”
Behind all these hard-to-grasp numbers are people like Rachid. “As long as the janjaweed exists no one in Sudan is safe,” she says. “I don’t know where any of my family is. I don’t know if they are alive. No one can tell us when or how our nightmare ends.” This is neither the life Rachid signed up for nor the one she deserves. And the world seems not to have noticed.
Understanding the veil of silence
One would think the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe would feature regularly in the news; but, nearly two and a half years into this war, piercing the veil of silence around Sudan remains devilishly difficult, for a myriad of reasons.
Perhaps most obvious is the world being in a heightened sense of turmoil, ranging from more conflicts in the Middle East, Ukraine, and beyond to faltering democracies around the globe. With so much chaos, few globally-minded citizens have noticed that the catastrophe unfolding in Sudan eclipses the crises in Gaza/Israel and Ukraine…combined. Donors are stretched increasingly thin in both time and resources as inflation once again rises in the United States, and many are frustrated that they can’t do more in this time of great need.
Sudan Crisis Guide
Trying to make sense of the war in Sudan? We’ll get you up to speed in a few minutes.
The invisibility is also by choice though. Western journalists largely chose to turn away from Sudan after the U.S. military evacuated embassy staff from Khartoum at the outset of the war. The Trump Administration chose to deprioritize Sudan and to gut USAID —which has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis— further pushing Sudan off the radar. Meanwhile, inside the country, the army and RSF have chosen to destroy communication networks in parts of the country, making it hard for ordinary Sudanese to share their plight with the world.
More recently, the introduction of AI summaries into search engines makes it even more difficult for ordinary people to get basic facts about the plight of the Sudanese people and discover ways to help. While our own web traffic is still up year-over-year, new visitors have plunged nearly 50% throughout 2025, largely due to Google using the news and content we provide —without our permission— to generate AI summaries in their search engine. Countless organizations and companies are experiencing the same problem in their own work, with early research showing users are much less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in results. With regards to Sudan, the information in these AI blurbs is often outdated and sometimes false. This is having a negative impact on our efforts to recruit new supporters, with people reading these summaries instead of going to full articles we provide, where they can also get involved.
These barriers to attention means efforts to save lives remain acutely underfunded. The United Nation’s humanitarian response plan for 2025 —more than $3 billion needed to keep the situation from merely getting worse— is only 24% funded for the entire year. That does not include what local Sudanese groups and private international organizations like us require to meet the needs the UN wouldn’t get to even if they were fully funded. Too few resources means fewer international and connected Sudanese eyes and ears on the ground, which means fewer stories and critical information gets back out into the world. And the veil of silence thickens all over again.
How you can help
There are flickers of hope despite these frustrating realities. The Atlantic’s September cover story is about the war in Sudan. Written by veteran journalist Anne Applebaum and appropriately named The Most Nihilistic Conflict on Earth, it is one of the most powerful pieces of outside reporting we’ve seen in the past two and a half years and is already pushing new eyes to the crisis.
Our learning resources and simple news and analysis remain free to all, and we’ve made it easy to support Sudanese heroes directly from wherever you call home. Still, reality dictates there are three simple things you can do to stay informed and involved.
1. Join our free email list
We know it’s old school, but this is the best way to stay informed about current events in Sudan and ways to help. You can expect no more than 2-3 emails a month.
2. Follow us on Instagram
This is the only social media platform where the algorithm works in our favor. Follow us to see timely updates and amplify important news to your followers.
3. Sign up for Miles For Sudan, or give
Our free global event turns everyday runs, bike rides, and walks into lifesaving support. Every mile you put in and dollar you raise helps fund emergency aid and long-term education programs led by Sudanese heroes.
Not a fan of fitness? No problem! We have an option where you can skip the moving and just fundraise. Every dollar raised still makes a difference and raises awareness. And the best part? Donations to all fundraising pages are currently being matched for a limited time!
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto. Operation Broken Silence a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Our EIN is 80-0671198.
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Nearly two and a half years into the world’s largest humanitarian emergency, the veil of silence and invisibility around Sudan’s needless suffering is more entrenched than ever. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-veil-of-silence-around-sudans-nightmare-war
One would think the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe would feature regularly in the news; but, nearly two and a half years into this war, piercing the veil of silence around Sudan remains devilishly difficult, for a myriad of reasons. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-veil-of-silence-around-sudans-nightmare-war
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Will you join us? https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-veil-of-silence-around-sudans-nightmare-war
The 16th annual Eden’s Run 5K
Our supporters came together in Memphis, TN on August 16 for our annual run and walk benefiting childhood education in Sudan.
On August 16, our supporters came together in Memphis, TN for our annual run and walk benefiting childhood education in Sudan. You ran through the heat and humidity and we made it to 82% of our $7,500 goal! A big thank you to all of our runners, volunteers, Memphis Runners Track Club, and Ouri Matcha for making race day possible. Discover photos from the event and timing results:
Eden’s Run was made possible by our generous sponsors:
What’ next? Join our virtual Miles For Sudan event!
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. For over a decade, we've allied people just like you with incredible Sudanese heroes who are bringing emergency aid, education, and healthcare to their people. And they need us now more than ever.
Miles For Sudan is our global event for runners, walkers, and cyclists who want to help Sudanese heroes save lives. All you have to do is sign up and then ask friends and family to give through your fundraising page after each workout. And the best part? You can participate from wherever you call home.
Not ready to participate in Miles For Sudan? Make a one-time donation or start a small monthly gift! Here are a few ways your generosity can help:
$200- provides a teacher's salary for one month.
$150- helps deliver new chalkboards and repair classrooms.
$100- provides pencils, notebooks, and other basic school supplies.
$50- gives the gift of sport by providing nets, balls, and more.
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto.
Operation Broken Silence is a registered 501(c)(3) organization. Your donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law.
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On August 16, 2025 our supporters came together in Memphis, TN to celebrate sixteen years of Eden’s Run 5K, our annual run and walk helping to bring education to kids in Sudan. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-16th-annual-edens-run-5k
We ran through the heat and humidity and, with your help we made it to 79% of our $7,500 goal! A big thank you to all of our runners, volunteers, Memphis Runners Track Club, and Ouri Matcha for making race day possible. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-16th-annual-edens-run-5k
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Will you join us? https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/the-16th-annual-edens-run-5k
Adré Children’s Feeding Program and Clinic Update - July 2025
What does hope look like in a refugee camp? A child receiving her only hot meal of the day. A mother being treated for malaria. A community standing together. Help us keep hope alive.
Program Background
When war erupted in Sudan in April 2023, Darfur quickly became the epicenter of some of the conflict’s worst atrocities. What began as a power struggle between Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) spiraled into a brutal, targeted campaign of violence. The largely Arab RSF launched a hate-driven assault on Darfur’s historic ethnic African communities, including the Zaghawa, Fur, and Masalit people groups.
Map by Operation Broken Silence
Between April and June 2023, up to 15,000 Masalit civilians were systematically massacred in West Darfur. By early November, the RSF had seized most of Darfur, minus the Greater El Fasher area. What’s followed has been catastrophic.
Parts of Darfur are now in famine. Refugees crossing the border into Adré, with nothing but the clothes on their backs and thousand-yard stares, tell stories of mass killings and starvation. Darfur has descended into ethnic cleansing, widespread rape, and total lawlessness under RSF occupation. Markets, farms, banks, and aid warehouses have been looted or destroyed.
In response, Operation Broken Silence is helping local heroes deliver emergency food and medical care to some of the most vulnerable refugee communities in eastern Chad. We’re supporting trusted Sudanese community leaders in two key areas:
The Adré refugee camps
The Tiné area
Below are important updates from the Children’s Feeding Center and Healthcare Clinic in Adré—both entirely refugee-led and privately funded by people like you.
For You Healthcare Clinic
Against the backdrop of displacement, hunger, and disease, the small clinic in Adré continues saving and changing lives. Each week, the dedicated medical and administrative teams work with compassion to deliver lifesaving care to Sudanese refugees, despite limited resources and growing demand. There has been a noticeable increase in the number of people needing the clinic’s services, particularly in the chronic disease and gynecology areas, after large numbers of refugees from El Fasher, North Darfur and Nyala, South Darfur recently arrived in Chad. Here’s a snapshot of life in the clinic during the first two weeks of July:
Photos: Life at the Clinic in Adré
General Medical Care. More than 1,500 patients received treatment. Respiratory infections—driven by dust storms and overcrowded conditions—remain the most common illness, followed by gastrointestinal infections, malaria, typhoid, reproductive challenges, and urinary tract issues. A lack of widely available clean water, proper sanitation, and nutrition support continues to drive health problems such as these.
Emergency and Minor Procedures. The Emergency Department handled 135 urgent cases, including malaria, low blood pressure, shortness of breath, and diabetes.
Chronic Disease Support. The clinic served 270 patients, including check-ups, ongoing follow-up, and providing free treatments for diabetes, stress, and anemia patients. These patients received essential medications, monitoring, and ongoing support to help manage their conditions, an often overlooked need in emergency settings.
Women’s Health Services. The Obstetrics and Gynecology unit provided personalized care to 120 women in the areas of pregnancy, childbirth, gynecological problems, tests, and sonic waves.
Nursing & Minor Operations. Meanwhile, the nursing team treated 267 patients, including administering medicines, performing minor procedures such as removing foreign objects under the skin, and delivering other forms of minor wound care.
Health Education & Awareness. The Awareness and Counseling Department continues to be a crucial pillar of the clinic. Volunteer staff held several group sessions, such as:
Training workshops to enhance diagnostic and treatment capabilities for the clinic team.
In the second week of July, clinic volunteers held a live theatrical presentation titled Prevention is Better Than Cure for patients and caregivers.
A number of individual and group awareness sessions were held concerning humanitarian issues in Adré.
For You Children’s Feeding Center
In June, the Children’s Feeding Center was forced to temporarily suspend operations due to a lack of funding. The meals being provided here were the only reliable source of nourishment for hundreds of children. Funds are urgently needed to reopen the center.
Photos: Life at the Clinic in Adré
Current conditions in the Adré camps
What began as a desperate escape from West Darfur is now a protracted humanitarian emergency in eastern Chad. Sudanese refugees fleeing ethnic cleansing and famine face new threats like hunger and disease after arriving at one of the 30+ informal border crossings, many having walked for days carrying only what they could, including mothers and children weakened by hunger and trauma. The scale of this crisis is staggering:
The number of Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad has surged to nearly 875,000 people.
87% of those registered are women and children, of which 25% are adult women.
Over 230,000 refugees are currently settled in the Adré area, more than five times the town’s original population.
14% have specific needs, including people with disabilities, chronic illness, or those who are unaccompanied.
The Chadian government and United Nations estimate that by the end of 2025, the total number of refugees and returnees across Chad could eclipse one million people.
Source: UNHCR CHAD| CORE Sudan Emergency Situation (July 20, 2025)
Resources are stretched to the breaking point, especially following recent USAID funding cuts. Most refugees remain in overcrowded and under-resourced sites. Beyond immediate requirements for food, water, and medical care, there is an urgent need for kitchen utensils and sleeping/shelter material. While it is much more secure here than RSF-controlled areas of Darfur, many of the refugees understandably feel vulnerable. Adré sits a few miles outside of Sudan and, while the Chadian government has troops monitoring parts of the border, small numbers of RSF fighters can still slip into the country easily. Some refugees have reported receiving death threats from the paramilitaries.
These heroes need your help
The needs in Adré are urgent and growing every week. Right now, it takes a minimum of $8,500 each month to keep the For You Child Feeding Center & Clinic running at minimal capacity. This covers everything from medical supplies and staff support to hot meals for vulnerable children to basic medication for patients that couldn’t afford it otherwise.
These programs can expand with even more funding. Thousands are still waiting for care. Countless children go to bed hungry every night. You can help change that. In a place where hope is in short supply, your generosity means more than you can imagine.
$8,500: fully fund the Feeding Center and Clinic for an entire month
$4,000: support the children's feeding program for one month
$1,000: provide one week of all basic medicines needed at the clinic
$500: feed 500 hungry children for one week
$250: help expand the children's feed program
$100: deliver nutritional supplements that help fight malnutrition
$50: deliver anti-malarial, typhus and other speciality medications
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence with Adré in the memo line and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto.
Operation Broken Silence a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Our EIN is 80-0671198.
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When war erupted in Sudan in April 2023, Darfur quickly became the epicenter of some of the conflict’s worst atrocities, sparking off a protracted humanitarian emergency for refugees in eastern Chad. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/adre-childrens-feeding-program-and-clinic-update-july-2025
Over 230,000 Sudanese refugees have fled into Adré, eastern Chad. Most are women and children. A small clinic and feeding center are saving lives, but they need your help to keep going. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/adre-childrens-feeding-program-and-clinic-update-july-2025
The small clinic in Adré continues saving and changing lives. Each week, the dedicated team works with compassion to deliver lifesaving care to Sudanese refugees, despite limited resources and growing demand. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/adre-childrens-feeding-program-and-clinic-update-july-2025
What does hope look like in a refugee camp? It looks like a child receiving her only hot meal of the day. A mother being treated for malaria. A community standing together. Help us keep hope alive. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/adre-childrens-feeding-program-and-clinic-update-july-2025
Letter to Secretary Rubio urging U.S. to prioritize protection, aid, and peace in Sudan
Operation Broken Silence is joining over 30 organizations, Sudanese civic leaders, and experts in urging the United States to prioritize civilian protection, emergency humanitarian aid, and a real peace deal for the Sudanese people.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio (U.S. State Department)
Operation Broken Silence is joining over 30 organizations, Sudanese civic leaders, and experts in urging the United States to prioritize civilian protection, emergency humanitarian aid, and a real peace deal for the Sudanese people.
Sudan is home to the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe. After more than two years of brutal warfare between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the country is collapsing. Neighborhoods in Khartoum lie in ruins. In Darfur, entire communities have already been wiped out by RSF-led violence. Families are fleeing with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Famine is spreading, and access to basic healthcare is disappearing.
Our letter welcomes Secretary Rubio’s recent statements on Sudan and his commitment to appointing a Special Envoy, but words alone aren’t enough. Sudanese civilians need protection, lifesaving aid, and an inclusive peace process led by the people, not the warlords who have torn the country apart.
On July 20, a high-level meeting on Sudan is set to take place between the United States, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates—an informal group often called the Quad. While this is a needed step, it reflects a troubling dynamic shaping any future progress: one where peace talks are driven by geopolitical interests, not by the voices and needs of the Sudanese people.
For example, independent investigations by human rights organizations, journalists, and a United Nations panel have concluded that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is providing weapons and other support to the RSF. In January, members of Congress also confirmed that the UAE is actively engaged in fueling this crisis. Then Secretary of State-designate Marco Rubio also noted the UAE is “openly supporting” the RSF, which has committed widespread atrocities throughout the conflict, including war crimes and the horrific use of sexual violence.
It’s possible a ceasefire can be secured with help from the Quad —and one would be welcomed— but lasting peace can be neither transactional nor secured by Sudan’s warring parties. Lasting progress in Sudan will only be rooted in justice and accountability. With nearly 15 million people displaced and well over half of the country in desperate need of food and medicine, it is more critical than ever that the U.S. exert its influence with urgency and in ways appropriate that meet this moment for what it actually is.
Get Involved
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Our Sudanese partners are overwhelmed with needs as war and hunger spread. By joining our global campaign Miles For Sudan or giving below, you will help them serve the most vulnerable in this time of tremendous need.
Can’t participate? Make a donation or set up a small monthly gift instead:
$1,000 - Fully funds one classroom at Endure Primary School in Yida Refugee Camp for half a semester.
$500 - Delivers food to Darfuri genocide survivors who have fled to South Sudan.
$250 - Provides a daily breakfast to 10 children for an entire month in Adré refugee camp, where many Darfuri genocide survivors now live.
$100 - Supports a sexual assault counselor in the Greater El Fasher area of North Darfur.
$50 - Helps bring school supplies to students in Yida Refugee Camp.
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto.
Operation Broken Silence a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Our EIN is 80-0671198.
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Operation Broken Silence is joining 34 organizations, Sudanese civic leaders, and experts in urging the United States to prioritize civilian protection, emergency humanitarian aid, and a real peace deal for the people of Sudan. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/letter-to-secretary-rubio-urging-us-to-prioritize-protection-aid-and-peace-in-sudan
Sudan is home to the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe. After more than two years of brutal warfare between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the country is collapsing. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/letter-to-secretary-rubio-urging-us-to-prioritize-protection-aid-and-peace-in-sudan
It’s possible a ceasefire can be secured with help from the Quad —and one would be welcomed— but lasting peace can be neither transactional nor secured by Sudan’s warring parties. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/letter-to-secretary-rubio-urging-us-to-prioritize-protection-aid-and-peace-in-sudan
Hundreds killed during RSF massacres of North Kordofan villages
The Rapid Support Forces have torn through villages around the town of Bara in North Kordofan, killing over 450 civilians. Satellite imagery confirms the attacks were deliberate, making this one of the deadliest massacres of the war so far.
Images: A screenshot from a video filmed by RSF fighters in Shak Al-Noum shows burning homes and fleeing civilians (left). Satellite imagery from Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab shows razed structures in the village.
The Rapid Support Forces have torn through villages around the town of Bara in North Kordofan, killing over 450 civilians. Satellite imagery confirms the attacks were deliberate, making this one of the deadliest massacres of the war so far.
•••••
In mid‑July 2025, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) unleashed a series of attacks on villages around the town of Bara in North Kordofan state. According to UNICEF, at least 24 boys, 11 girls, and two pregnant women were killed alongside hundreds of their fellow citizens, especially in the villages of Shak Al-Noum on July 12 and Hilat Hamid on July 13. Witnesses described residents being burned alive in their homes, as well as mass shootings as people fled during widespread RSF looting.
While some reports suggest a handful of civilians returned fire on the RSF with AK-47s in a bid to protect their neighbors, the villages that were attacked were not militarized and completely defenseless against RSF heavy weaponry and infantry.
Map: Click or tap to expand. (source)
Imagery: Yale Humanitarian Research Lab (click or tap to expand)
This latest massacre is part of the RSF’s multi-pronged push on El‑Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, which is under control of the national army. The massacre of Shak Al-Noum appears to be part of the RSF’s broader strategy to encircle El‑Obeid, which already hosts an estimated 30,000 displaced Sudanese on top of local residents.
Analysis of satellite imagery by Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) has further documented the destruction of Shak Al-Noum. The images show widespread thermal scarring, smoldering ruins, and burned structures consistent with deliberate arson. HRL also documented RSF vehicles in nearby areas, as well as newly displaced persons and expanded human burial mounds in the nearby state capital of El-Obeid.
Sudan Crisis Guide
Trying to make sense of the war in Sudan? We’ll get you up to speed in just a few minutes.
The Sudanese human rights group Emergency Lawyers stated: “It has been proven that the targeted villages were completely devoid of any military manifestations or targets which exposes the criminal nature of these actions carried out in total disregard of International Humanitarian Law.” The RSF now controls Bara town, just a few kilometers south of Shak Al-Noum, and continues to slowly regain ground elsewhere in North Kordofan.
Sudan is well into a third year of one of the most brutal wars in modern history. Everything has been weaponized by the army and RSF—former allies who ousted a transitional civilian government in 2019 and are now fighting for control of a nation that wants neither in charge. Both sides have blocked aid, targeted humanitarian workers, and killed civilians. The RSF is also using mass rape as a weapon of war. Khartoum lies in ruins, as do countless other towns and villages.
This nightmare has given way to the largest hunger, displacement, and childhood education crises in the world. Nearly 30 million Sudanese —over half of the entire country— are facing high levels of acute food insecurity, with famine declared in multiple areas. The U.S. government has recognized that genocide is underway by the RSF in Darfur, while the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor recently reported to the United Nations that her office has “reasonable grounds to believe that war crimes and crimes against humanity” are being committed.
This latest massacre in North Kordofan is yet another devastating reminder that the Sudanese people —trapped between bombs, drone strikes, food blockades, and targeted brutality— continue to suffer the most from this war. But while most of the world continues looking away, you don’t have to. We can help Sudanese heroes get the support they need and push others to start paying attention.
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Our Sudanese partners are overwhelmed with needs as war and hunger spread. By joining our global campaign Miles For Sudan or giving below, you will help them serve the most vulnerable in this time of tremendous need.
Can’t participate? Make a donation or set up a small monthly gift instead:
$1,000 - Fully funds one classroom at Endure Primary School in Yida Refugee Camp for half a semester.
$500 - Delivers food to Darfuri genocide survivors who have fled to South Sudan.
$250 - Provides a daily breakfast to 10 children for an entire month in the Adré refugee camps, where many Darfuri genocide survivors now live.
$100 - Deliver nutritional supplements that help fight malnutrition in Adré
$50 - Helps bring school supplies to students in Yida Refugee Camp.
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto.
Operation Broken Silence a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Our EIN is 80-0671198.
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Short statements you can share online and text to others. Simply copy and paste.
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The Rapid Support Forces have torn through villages around the city of Bara in North Kordofan, killing over 450 civilians. Satellite imagery confirms the attacks were deliberate, making this one of the deadliest massacres of the war so far. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/hundreds-killed-during-rsf-massacres-of-north-kordofan-villages
This latest massacre is part of the RSF’s multidirectional assault on El‑Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, which is under the control of the national army. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/hundreds-killed-during-rsf-massacres-of-north-kordofan-villages
As the war grinds on, it’s the Sudanese people —trapped between bombs, drone strikes, food blockades, and targeted brutality— who continue to suffer the most. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/hundreds-killed-during-rsf-massacres-of-north-kordofan-villages
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Will you join us? https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/hundreds-killed-during-rsf-massacres-of-north-kordofan-villages
Death toll rising in Sudan after USAID cuts
USAID was one of the leading international development agencies fighting famine in Sudan. After being illegally shuttered, the death toll of the world’s largest humanitarian emergency is soaring.
USAID was one of the leading international development agencies fighting famine in Sudan. After being illegally shuttered, the death toll of the world’s largest humanitarian emergency is soaring.
•••••
When the Trump Administration entered the White House in January, one of their first moves was to freeze U.S. foreign aid “that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States.” Chaos quickly ensued across the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) —the American government’s independent agency responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance— as there was little guidance on what work was and wasn't allowed.
Uncertainty quickly morphed into mayhem. A team from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) breached USAID’s secure systems without security clearances. USAID security officers who intervened to protect classified and sensitive information were threatened and then placed on leave. Staff and contractors struggled to interpret conflicting directives: one enforcing the freeze and another stating lifesaving operations could continue with a waiver, though few partners were told how to obtain one.
Then-DOGE head Elon Musk soon declared USAID would be shut down, posting, “We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper. Could gone to some great parties. Did that instead.” Administration officials issued conflicting statements, some claiming USAID would close, others that it would move under the State Department. Thousands of critical staff were fired or placed on leave. And, halfway around the globe, the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe was about to get much more dangerous.
The crisis in Sudan and USAID’s response
Sudan Crisis Guide
Trying to make sense of the war in Sudan? We’ll get you up to speed in just a few minutes.
Today, Sudan is well into a third year of one of the most brutal wars in modern history. Everything has been weaponized by the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—former allies who ousted a transitional civilian government in 2019 and are now fighting for control of a nation that wants neither in charge. Both sides have blocked aid and targeted humanitarian workers, and the RSF is using mass rape as a weapon of war. Khartoum lies in ruins, as do countless other towns and villages.
This nightmare war has given way to the largest hunger, displacement, and childhood education crises in the world. Nearly 30 million Sudanese —over half of the entire country— are facing high levels of acute food insecurity, with famine declared in multiple areas. The suffering is staggering, and the U.S. government has recognized that genocide is being committed.
USAID entered the fray in the early days of this crisis. Agency staff coordinated with humanitarian partners, stayed in contact with local Sudanese staff, and deployed an elite Disaster Assistance Response Team to assess needs and direct incoming aid to where it was most needed.
As the months ticked by, USAID and State Department staff worked around the clock to pry open aid routes, finally getting aid convoys into some of the hardest-hit areas. While most of the world abandoned Sudan at the outset of the war, many of the Sudanese people found a friend in the United States. In fact, last year, Americans provided nearly 50% of all humanitarian aid to Sudan, much of it delivered in sacks and boxes stamped with the USAID logo and the warm words: From the American People.
Death toll rising after USAID cuts
Now, a shocking Washington Post investigation is revealing how the shuttering of USAID is no longer just a political headline. In Sudan, aid cuts are rapidly accelerating the already unconscionable death toll. From the Post:
“While the Trump administration’s cuts to USAID this year have been felt deeply across the world, their impact in Sudan was especially deadly, according to more than two dozen Washington Post interviews with civilians, clinicians and aid officials in the capital, Khartoum, and surrounding villages. When U.S.-supported soup kitchens were forced to close, babies starved quietly, their mothers said, while older siblings died begging for food. Funding stoppages meant that critical medical supplies were never delivered, doctors said. The lack of U.S.-funded disease response teams has made it harder to contain cholera outbreaks, which are claiming the lives of those already weakened by hunger…”
Here is one story of the many families who have watched loved ones die:
Photo: USAID assistance on the Sudan/South Sudan border (Operation Broken Silence).
“In the desert outside the city of Omdurman, just to the northwest of the capital, Fatma Swak Fadul lives in a sweltering adobe slum. She used to have seven children; now she has five. For more than a year, they survived on a single daily meal from local soup kitchens. They were run by volunteers from the local Emergency Response Rooms…Last year, USAID gave the Emergency Response Rooms $12 million, which accounted for 77 percent of the soup kitchens’ funding, said Mohamed Elobaid, who manages the group’s finances. When the stop-work order came in January, Fadul said, almost all the soup kitchens in her neighborhood shut down overnight. So her children starved.
Her daughter Nada, only 18 months old, starved to death in February, she said, and was often too weak to cry. Three-year-old Omer, who loved to wrestle with his siblings and dreamed of owning a bike, lingered longer. First, his mother said, he began to lose his vision, which can be a side effect of malnutrition. Then he began asking fretfully for an absent brother. In his last days in March, he curled up on a mat, she said, begging her for porridge. ‘I told him we don’t have any wheat to make that,’ Fadul said. ‘He was suffering a lot and then he died around midnight.’ His mother wept, she recalled, then asked the neighbors to help bury him.”
Read the full Washington Post report here.
Trump Administration officials and Elon Musk have repeatedly said “no one has died” from USAID cuts. Mounting public reporting (see here, here, and here for a few more examples), anecdotal accounts from Sudan, and some of our own Sudanese partners —who have friends who used to receive USAID funding— have been saying otherwise for months. The administration previously announced that funding is being restored for urgent, life-saving work. But in many places like Sudan that still hasn’t happened. Aid workers have been let go and payment systems were destroyed by DOGE. Vulnerable communities are still without the help they desperately need.
In response to several questions from the Post, the State Department press office said it was “reorienting our foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for the United States. … We are continuing lifesaving programs and making strategic investments that strengthen other nations and our own country…Americans are the most charitable and humanitarian-minded people in the world. It’s time for other countries to step up in providing lifesaving aid.”
So far, little of that statement appears to be true.
With USAID officially shuttered, the future of American support in Sudan is still unclear.
Only Congress has the legal authority to close USAID, but that didn’t stop the Trump Administration from fully shuttering the agency on July 1, 2025. Due to the legislative branch abdicating its authority and the unnecessarily destructive manner in which USAID was closed, not only will there be more unnecessary suffering in the world in the months ahead, but more avoidable disruption in the American political and governmental systems.
For decades, USAID enjoyed strong bipartisan support in Washington. The agency made up less than 1% of the entire federal budget —barely any money in the grand scheme of things— and received praise worldwide for helping to stabilize volatile areas and supporting communities climbing out of poverty. But what the American public thinks about foreign aid has never been easy to ascertain. According to Pew Research, “For many years, Americans have had, at best, mixed views about the effectiveness and desirability of foreign assistance.”
USAID’s role in national security become much clearer in recent years. Its success in countering Russian and Chinese influence through development and humanitarian work drew the ire of both authoritarian countries, and the agency played a critical role in preventing global health threats from reaching the United States. Given USAID’s outsized impact as such a tiny amount of the federal budget and the respect the agency brought to the United States abroad, it’s fair to say that USAID is a worthwhile investment that should not have been closed, even if some reforms and tweaks would have been beneficial.
What happens now?
Operation Broken Silence does not receive government funding; we rely entirely on individuals, families, and private institutions. However, like many small nonprofits operating in countries where USAID had a presence, our work often benefited indirectly from the humanitarian and economic stability the agency helped create. Humanitarian work is incredibly complex and requires a multitude of organizations supporting local heroes to tackle difficult challenges. No single group can do it all; but, when a powerhouse like USAID is suddenly removed from the situation, everyone suffers.
Humanitarian conditions in Sudan will continue growing more dire without USAID. More deaths from starvation and preventable diseases are now locked in for the months ahead. The suffering of the Sudanese people is already unbearable. Abandoning them now is unconscionable. We urge you to stand with them in this dark hour.
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Our Sudanese partners are overwhelmed with needs as war and hunger spread. By joining our global campaign Miles For Sudan or giving below, you will help them serve the most vulnerable in this time of tremendous need.
Can’t participate? Make a donation or set up a small monthly gift instead:
$1,000 - Fully funds one classroom at Endure Primary School in Yida Refugee Camp for half a semester.
$500 - Delivers food to Darfuri genocide survivors who have fled to South Sudan.
$250 - Provides a daily breakfast to 10 children for an entire month in Adré refugee camp, where many Darfuri genocide survivors now live.
$100 - Supports a sexual assault counselor in the Greater El Fasher area of North Darfur.
$50 - Helps bring school supplies to students in Yida Refugee Camp.
Checks can be made payable to Operation Broken Silence and mailed to PO Box 770900 Memphis, TN 38177-0900. You can also donate stock or crypto.
Operation Broken Silence a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Our EIN is 80-0671198.
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USAID was one of the leading international development agencies fighting famine in Sudan. Now that the agency has been illegally shuttered, the death toll of the world’s largest humanitarian emergency is soaring. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/death-toll-rising-in-sudan-after-usaid-cuts
While the Trump administration’s cuts to USAID this year have been felt deeply across the world, their impact in Sudan was especially deadly. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/death-toll-rising-in-sudan-after-usaid-cuts
Only Congress has the legal authority to close USAID, but that didn’t stop the Trump Administration from illegally shuttering the agency on July 1, 2025. https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/death-toll-rising-in-sudan-after-usaid-cuts
Operation Broken Silence is dedicated to Sudanese communities, cultivating resilience and driving meaningful change through crowdfunded programs. Will you join us? https://operationbrokensilence.org/blog/death-toll-rising-in-sudan-after-usaid-cuts