Most refugees are fleeing to neighboring countries such as Chad, Egypt, and Libya, the UNHCR has said

More than 14 million people have been forced to flee their homes since war broke out in Sudan three years ago, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Monday, describing the situation as "the world's largest displacement and protection crisis."

Sudan plunged into a civil war in April 2023 after a struggle for power broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict has been marked by widespread violence against civilians, including killings, sexual violence, and attacks on specific ethnic groups, the UNHCR said. Basic infrastructure has collapsed in parts of the country, with clinics closing and aid programs scaled back due to insecurity and funding shortfalls.

Nearly 12 million people remain displaced, including 6.8 million within Sudan, while around 4.5 million have sought refuge in neighboring countries such as the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, and Uganda, the agency said.

READ MORE: Dozens killed in Sudan hospital bombing

Many of those uprooted are living in dire conditions without adequate shelter, food, and basic services, it added. In Chad, one in ten Sudanese refugee children is malnourished, according to the agency.

The UNHCR warned that its 2026 regional response plan, which requires $1.6 billion, remains severely underfunded, with only about a quarter of the needed financing secured so far.

"Every life lost to war. Every person forced to flee. Each one is a tragedy," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih said, warning that "we cannot turn away."

Sudan has also topped the International Rescue Committee's (IRC) Emergency Watchlist for global humanitarian crises for the third consecutive year, ahead of the Palestinian territories and South Sudan. At least three children a day are dying in El-Fasher, North Darfur due to food shortages, according to the Sudan Doctors Network. 

The crisis is increasingly destabilizing neighboring states, with violence spilling across the borders into countries such as Chad, which hosts more than 1.3 million Sudanese refugees.

Aid agencies warn that funding shortages mean basic needs are going unmet. Conditions in Chad are dire, with refugees often receiving less water than minimum standards require, while food assistance is being cut. The UN says it can currently support only four in ten refugees in Chad.