Sudanese refugees fleeing clashes hit 90,000 in Chad – UN

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) sounded the alarm over the increasing number of Sudanese refugees arriving in Chad, up from 76,000 to 90,000 within three days.

Raouf Mazou, Assistant High Commissioner for Operations of the agency told the media during a press conference in capital Ndjamena that most refugees are women and children.
“At this time, we think we are close to 90,000 people”, he stressed.

Over 250,000 Sudanese have fled their country to neighboring countries as result of conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Both are fighting over power since April 15.

Mazou warned against the upcoming rainy season, which could be an additional obstacle to providing assistance. “As the rainy season approaches, we urgently need to relocate new arrivals to the nearest refugee camps”, he said in a statement issued in N’Djamena.

The central African country, before the arrival of the new wave of refugees, hosted already around 600,000 mostly Sudanese refugees who had fled previous conflicts. Chad is now hosting almost 700,000 refugees in total, the UNHCR said, urging more international support for displaced people from Sudan. It is worth recalling that over 200 Sudanese soldiers from the army have also crossed into Chad for their safety.