PORT SUDAN, Sudan, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Heavy traffic and sluggish road conditions have made the journey to a displacement center in the north of Port Sudan unusually time-consuming. The coastal city, now the largest host for people fleeing the ongoing conflict in Sudan, has become a hub for displaced families seeking refuge.
In a worn-out tent in the eastern section of the shelter, Asmaa Obeid Allah, a displaced mother, sat with her young children as she prepared a simple meal, while her infant lay on a piece of cardboard.
"The war has made me the only provider for seven children. My husband is missing, and I have no information about his whereabouts," said Obeid Allah, recounting her tragedy.
"We were living in Omdurman, north of Khartoum," she said, looking sad and pale. "About a month after the war broke out, my husband disappeared, and up to this day, I remain unknown about his fate."
Her challenges are compounded by the chronic illnesses affecting two of her children. One child, aged 14, has diabetes and requires insulin, while another, aged six, has asthma and needs inhalers costing about 30,000 Sudanese pounds, or around 13 U.S. dollars in the parallel market. These medical expenses are beyond the family's means.
Food assistance is provided intermittently, with the family relying on one meal per day, typically lentil soup and dry bread supplied by local bakery owners.
Obeid Allah's eldest son, 16-year-old Ali, tries to help by selling consumer goods in the local market.
"Every day, I go to the grand market in Port Sudan to sell consumer goods, including soap, glycerin, and toothbrushes. I get these items from a wholesale merchant and sell them for a modest profit margin," Ali told Xinhua.
"The situation is difficult. We see our mother's distress and miss our father a lot," the boy said, fighting back tears as his mother patted his shoulder to comfort him.
"We have many families in this center facing challenging humanitarian conditions," Islam Mohamed, supervisor of the shelter center, told Xinhua, pointing out that Obeid Allah's plight is particularly dire.
The shelter administration has been in contact with various humanitarian and charitable organizations to secure essential assistance for her family, said Mohamed, adding that they are also communicating with the Sudanese Red Crescent Society and the International Committee of the Red Cross to locate Obeid Allah's husband.
Overcrowding at the shelter remains a critical issue, with multiple families often sharing a single tent.
Ehsan Mohamed, a displaced mother of four children, shares a small torn tent with another displaced woman and her five children.
"My baby is malnourished, so he cries incessantly, and I am unable to supply him with milk," said Ehsan. Her baby also suffers from cracked skin caused by sleeping on the floor and the extreme heat during the past period, she added.
Sudan has been gripped by a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since mid-April 2023, which claimed at least 29,683 lives and displaced about 15 million people, either inside or outside Sudan, according to the latest estimates by international organizations. ■