Sudan crisis worsens as civil war enters 4th year and Hormuz closure disrupts aid

By — Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin By — Veronica Vela Veronica Vela Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/sudan-crisis-worsens-as-civil-war-enters-4th-year-and-hormuz-closure-disrupts-aid Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio It’s the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, yet aid groups say it has received far too little attention. As Sudan’s civil war enters its fourth year, nearly two out of every five people face emergency-level hunger and humanitarian officials warn the crisis has been compounded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Nick Schifrin reports. A warning, some images in this story are disturbing. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. Geoff Bennett: It's the world's largest humanitarian crisis, yet aid groups say it has received far too little attention, even as Sudan's civil war enters its fourth year. Sudan's conflict and the suffering it has created are growing more severe. Nearly two out of every five people face emergency levels of hunger. And humanitarian officials warn the crisis has been compounded by disruptions to global aid following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. As Nick Schifrin reports, the toll on civilians continues to mount. A warning, some images in this story are disturbing. Nick Schifrin: In the fields of Sudan, it's time for the harvest. The colors may be bountiful, bright green and red, but the harvest is not. Farmers are fighting three simultaneous battles, drought, displacement, and now a deficit of fertilizer and fuel. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has hiked prices for Sudan's farmers and reduced the country's access to food, just as parts of Sudan suffer from famine and the devastation of a brutal civil war that's entered its fourth year. Tjada D'Oyen McKenna, CEO, Mercy Corps: People are suffering, and this is entirely manmade and can be stopped. Nick Schifrin: Tjada D'Oyen McKenna is the CEO of Mercy Corps, a humanitarian organization working on Sudan's front lines. Tjada D'Oyen McKenna: Some people have had to resort to eating leaves to survive because of a lack of food. And even when people do have access to it, the ability to afford it is even worse at this point. We are seeing this irregularity of supply, as well as the price spikes are really locking in food insecurity and hunger situations for years to come. Nick Schifrin: What will happen to Sudan if the strait isn't open? Cindy McCain was until recently the executive director of the World Food Program. Cindy McCain, Former Executive Director, World Food Program: In the worst-case scenario, the country could implode and just turn into complete anarchy. Nick Schifrin: The war has already pushed the country toward collapse, on one side, the government's Sudanese Armed Forces, on the other, the paramilitary rebel group, the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF