More than 3.3 million Sudanese people, displaced both internally and externally, returned to their homes in nine states across Sudan in November 2025, announced the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on 26 January 2026.
An estimated 3,334,705 people returned to 2,500 locations in 65 localities across nine Sudanese states. Khartoum recorded the highest number of returns, with at least 1.4 million people, followed by Al Gezira, where approximately 1.1 million have returned.
IOM’s recently published report covers the period from 1 to 30 November 2025 based on data collected from more than 12,000 sites in 185 localities across all 18 states of Sudan.
According to the report, 83% of the returnees came from internal displacement, while 17% returned from outside the country. Children under the age of 18 accounted for 55% of internally displaced returnees and 45% of those returning from abroad.
The number of internally displaced persons in Sudan had previously peaked at approximately 11.5 million, before gradually declining, due to returns, to at least 9.3 million, according to the latest UN statistics.
Internal displacement has decreased by 20% compared to its peak level. The number of internally displaced people declined in 11 of 18 states compared to the previous month, while it increased in Central Darfur, East Darfur, North Darfur, South Darfur, South Kordofan, White Nile, and Khartoum. The IOM noted that 9,258,273 people remain internally displaced across 11,194 locations in 185 localities nationwide.
On 17 December 2025, the IOM said it recorded in October 2025 the return of 3,027,446 people to their areas of origin or nearby locations, including 2,260,735 who returned from internal displacement and 566,711 who returned from outside Sudan.
The war in Sudan began on 15 April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), resulting the displacement of 12 to 14 million and killing over 150,000 people. Sudan is the world’s largest displacement crisis and one of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Of the 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The SAF holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the country, including Khartoum. Although the SAF has recently claimed that it has recaptured Dilling in South Kordofan, fighting in the Kordofan region has displaced more than 88,000 people in recent months, as humanitarian access remains severely restricted and civilians face worsening conditions.
For more information, visit iom.int/news.
