UNICEF spokesman James Elder has said drone attacks on power stations are worsening Sudan's water crisis, as water pumps and treatment facilities depend on electricity, while drought is intensifying the shortage.
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Speaking to Anadolu Agency after a recent visit to Sudan, Elder said the ongoing conflict has made it hard to find safe places, while living conditions for residents continue to deteriorate.
He said millions of people have been forced to leave their homes and are living in harsh conditions, stressing that insecurity is no longer confined to areas of direct fighting.
"We face severe restrictions on access to water and acute shortages, as well as a lack of food that threatens lives. There is no longer any safe place. Sudanese people do not know where they can go to escape the drones," he said.
He continued: "Millions of people have been displaced from their homes and are living in appalling conditions. What makes the situation far worse for mothers, girls and boys in Sudan is the unprecedented simultaneity of drone attacks and drought."
A worsening water crisis
Elder said the El Niño climate phenomenon, whose effects many bodies had warned about, has begun to affect Sudan, causing significant damage.
El Niño is a natural climate pattern caused by rising surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific Ocean. It affects weather patterns worldwide, bringing drought and higher temperatures to some regions, and heavy rains and flooding to others.
Elder explained that missing the planting season and failing to harvest grain means less food is available to the population, deepening the food crisis.
"The situation is also critical when it comes to water, which is vital for preventing malnutrition and for keeping people already suffering from it from falling ill," he said.
He said that in October, power stations were attacked by drones more than at any other point in this war, with attacks occurring roughly every two days.
He noted that power stations mean water, because water pumps run on electricity and treatment processes also require it.
"Sudan's children are therefore under attack from two directions: drones and drought," he said.
Elder confirmed that drone attacks and drought are directly linked to the water crisis.
He said that "Sudan has never before experienced a period in which its water has faced such simultaneous threats, whether caused by humans or by natural factors".
Last October, power stations in several Sudanese states came under intensive drone attacks. In a single week, 16 stations were targeted, causing power cuts across wide areas.
After these successive attacks, the Sudanese government announced on 2 November that it had filed a complaint against the Ethiopian government with the UN Security Council and the African Peace and Security Council.
Khartoum accused Addis Ababa of attacking facilities and power stations in several Sudanese states, saying the drones used in the attacks were launched from Ethiopian territory. Addis Ababa did not immediately comment.
Sudanese authorities and human rights organisations also accuse the Rapid Support Forces of targeting civilian facilities. The RSF usually does not comment on these accusations and says it is working to "protect civilians".
Peace, education and water
Elder said: "The Sudanese people want three things: peace, education and water. And drones are attacking all three."
He added: "But Sudanese people continue to support one another. That is truly admirable."
During his visit to Sudan, he said, he heard accounts of suffering that he described as "appalling", and expressed his appreciation for the determination residents have shown to keep living and to support one another despite what they face.
He said Sudanese people will continue to stand by one another in education, health and other areas where that is possible, but stressed that solidarity and goodwill alone are not enough to make life possible under these conditions.
He also urged the international community to act on two parallel tracks: increasing financial support for Sudan, and working to curb the flow of weapons into the country.
Since April 2023, Sudan has been engulfed in a war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, which has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced around 13 million, according to UN estimates.
