At the end of August, a landslide destroyed the village of Trasin in Sudan’s Darfur region, killing more than a thousand people. It is yet another tragedy weighing on a population already devastated by civil war.
A Catastrophe Within a Wider Humanitarian Collapse
Journalist Ishan Tharoor wrote in The Washington Post that the true death toll remains uncertain but is believed to be in the thousands. The landslide on August 31 completely wiped out the village, located in the remote Jebel Marra mountains, an area reachable only on foot or by donkey. According to aid workers and local militias controlling the region, UN relief teams struggled for days to reach the site.
This disaster is among the worst natural tragedies in Sudan’s modern history, yet it is just a detail within a broader picture of collapse. Since the outbreak of civil war in April 2023, Sudan has faced famine, cholera, mass displacement, and a long list of humanitarian catastrophes. The conflict may have already claimed more than 150,000 lives, while millions remain at risk of starvation, particularly in besieged areas such as al-Fashir.
Afghanistan: Earthquake in Kunar
On the same day as the Sudan landslide, a powerful earthquake struck Kunar province in eastern Afghanistan, killing over 2,200 people. Aftershocks over the following week left more than half a million people affected. Aid efforts faltered due to destroyed roads and bridges, with Islamic relief organisations estimating that 98% of homes were destroyed.
Entire families were left stranded in the mountains without shelter. “I lost around 300 cows, sheep, and goats,” one farmer from Wadir told the Associated Press. “Our village has collapsed. We have no other income, no homes, not even a wall left standing. How are we supposed to live?”
Global Indifference and Shrinking Aid
The Taliban government requested international assistance, and some neighbouring countries such as China and Uzbekistan provided limited aid. Humanitarian organisations mobilised emergency funds, but these represent only a fraction of what is needed. Afghanistan’s crisis deepens further as nearly half the population requires humanitarian aid, compounded by U.S. aid cuts and reduced global funding.
Meanwhile, Taliban restrictions have cruelly targeted women and girls, excluding them from education and public life. In Kunar, cultural taboos prevented some male rescuers from assisting injured women after the earthquake, worsening the suffering.
War, Sanctions, and Humanitarian Strangulation
Four years into Taliban rule, Afghanistan is still reeling from sanctions, the return of two million refugees from Pakistan and Iran, and the closure of hundreds of medical centres following U.S. aid reductions under the Trump administration.
In Sudan, the situation is just as bleak. The International Criminal Court (ICC) believes there is evidence of war crimes in the latest conflict, especially atrocities committed by the Rapid Support Forces in Darfur. The UN estimates that seven million women and girls in Sudan have lost access to vital reproductive health services, leading to a surge in stillbirths, maternal deaths, and preventable infant mortality.
Humanitarian System on the Brink
International donors, meanwhile, are turning their backs. Cindy McCain, director of the UN World Food Programme (WFP), wrote recently:
“Global needs are at record levels, driven by conflict and instability. Yet funding is shrinking as some governments cut humanitarian aid. The WFP faces a massive budget shortfall, forcing deep cuts in food assistance. Millions have already lost — or will soon lose — their lifeline.”
Both Sudan and Afghanistan now represent the permanent emergency of our age: wars, natural disasters, and global neglect, all colliding to strip already vulnerable populations of hope, dignity, and survival.
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