The Turkish Red Crescent has stepped up humanitarian assistance to Sudan, delivering 100 tonnes of aid in cooperation with the Sudanese Red Crescent to help ease the impact of the country’s ongoing conflict.

“Among our important supporters in this process is the Turkish Red Crescent, an organisation that stands out with its humanitarian aid,” Sudan Red Crescent Secretary General Ahmed et-Tayyib Suleiman said, praising Türkiye’s role in supporting relief efforts.

Sudan has been gripped by intense fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 15, 2023, a conflict that has triggered what aid agencies describe as the world’s largest displacement crisis and caused widespread damage to infrastructure, the economy, education and health services.

Speaking to Anadolu News Agency, Suleiman said that at the start of the conflict, the Sudanese Red Crescent and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) launched an emergency appeal of about $80 million.

Türkiye’s generous support

He then highlighted Türkiye’s support, saying, “Among our significant supporters during this process was the Turkish Red Crescent. On behalf of the organisation’s general secretariat, its volunteers and the people of Sudan, we extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation to the Turkish people for their assistance and support.”

Faruk Aksoy, head of the Turkish Red Crescent’s Sudan team, said Türkiye had delivered large-scale assistance throughout 2024. “As part of our humanitarian aid operation, we sent two aid ships to Sudan in 2024 and delivered 2,111 tonnes of humanitarian aid,” he said.

Referring to the deepening crisis after the RSF entered Al Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, on October 26, Aksoy said, “Following the developments in Al Fasher in October, the Turkish Red Crescent took swift action and assigned a team to Port Sudan.”

“Four days after arriving in Port Sudan, our team distributed food packages to 500 families and delivered 655 baby formulas to families in need at the al-Affad refugee camp in ed-Debbe,” he said.

Aksoy described the hardship faced by displaced families. “The families we saw in ed-Debbe had arrived there a few days before us from Al Fasher,” he said. “We met families who came on foot, families injured in drone attacks, and dignified Sudanese citizens like Aunt Nahide, who lost her siblings and took care of their children, arriving all the way to ed-Debbe with her nine children.”

He assured aid operations were continuing in five states. “We distributed 1,000 blankets to 500 families in Port Sudan and delivered 1,500 food packages to families who fled from Fasher and Kordofan to the Nahda camp in Atbara,” Aksoy said.

“In the coming days, 1,500 food packages will be distributed in Khartoum, 1,000 in Al-Obaid and 1,000 in Kosti,” he added, noting that the team would personally take part in distributions in Khartoum.

Aksoy said that through ongoing and planned operations, the Turkish Red Crescent will have delivered a total of 100 tonnes of food aid to families in need in Sudan. He also highlighted logistical challenges, saying, “The roads are heavily damaged, and sometimes it takes days to deliver our teams and aid supplies to the regions.”

“All these efforts are carried out in close cooperation with the Sudanese Red Crescent,” Aksoy said, praising its “qualified volunteers” working across the country.

Worsening humanitarian crisis

Describing the scale of the crisis, Aksoy said, “Sudan is facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. More than 25 million people are in need, and more than 10 million have been displaced.”

“As the Turkish Red Crescent, we will continue to help as much as we can,” he said, adding, “but we also believe that the international community should continue to increase its support for Sudan.”

Suleiman said Türkiye’s ambassador to Khartoum, Fatih Yıldız, pledged to mobilise “all institutions and organisations in his country to provide support to the Sudanese people and those affected.”

The Sudanese Red Crescent had been on the front lines of the humanitarian response since the first days of mass displacement. “From the very beginning, the Sudanese Red Crescent played a key role in responding to the urgent needs of those affected and harmed,” he said.

Suleiman noted the organisation was working “intensively to provide security and emergency protection, shelter, food aid, basic health services and all other essential services that citizens need,” adding that in many regions it is “the leading, and perhaps the only, organisation providing humanitarian services on the ground.”

According to Suleiman, the Sudanese Red Crescent operates through 18 branches across all of Sudan’s states, supported by about 800,000 active volunteers. However, the work has come at a heavy cost. “We face many serious challenges, primarily security,” he said, noting that “33 volunteers lost their lives while carrying out their duties in camps or association buildings.”

The conflict has also taken a severe toll on the Sudanese Red Crescent itself. “We are currently in the process of moving our office from Port Sudan to Khartoum,” Suleiman said, adding that the organisation had lost all its fixed and movable assets. “Our main building in Khartoum was completely looted, and approximately 70 vehicles, including warehouses and strategic stocks, were stolen.”

“Almost all of our offices need urgent support,” he said, adding, “We believe that all members of the international community will provide the necessary support to our organisation so that we can continue our humanitarian mission.”