As in 2023 and 2024, 2025 proved to be another catastrophic year for Sudan and much of the world.
War and conflict continued to devastate the country, reaching a critical point as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) intensified their attacks and expanded control across the Darfur and Kordofan regions.
Yet even amid the ongoing war, moments of resilience and achievement emerged in Sudan, from football and film to literature and the arts.
Here are some of the most significant events that took place in Sudan in 2025:
War in Sudan
The ongoing war in Sudan reached a horrifying stage this year with the Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) siege, starvation, deliberate killing, and ethnic cleansing in Al Fasher, the capital of North Darfur.
Al Fasher has been under the siege since May 2024. However, the RSF’s intensified its offense and began committing atrocities against civilians when the SAF withdrew from Darfur on 27 October 2025. In a matter of days, the RSF have killed over 2,000 civilians, mostly women and children. The army’s retreat has left more than a quarter of a million people, half of them children, defenceless and trapped under the RSF.
By April 2025, RSF attacks on Al Fasher had intensified, and by May 2025, the city had been under full siege as RSF fighters encircled it from all sides. By October 2025, satellite imagery confirmed near-total isolation, with berms and barriers cutting off access to the city, suggesting that the siege had tightened significantly.
Reports and footage emerging from Al Fasher point to widespread atrocities committed by the RSF, including killings, sexual violence, and the starvation of civilians. Civilians, including women and children, have reportedly been tortured and killed, their bodies left in public as acts of terror. Homes, hospitals, and entire neighbourhoods have been destroyed in the process. In addition, diseases such as cholera and dengue fever are claiming many lives.
The RSF have been at war with the SAF since April 2023, a conflict that has displaced between 12 and 14 million people and killed more than 150,000. In August 2024, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) confirmed famine in Sudan, identifying 10 locations that had reached IPC Phase 5 — the highest level of food insecurity. Nearly half of Sudan’s population, or 24.6 million people, are facing acute hunger, with 638,000 experiencing catastrophic conditions. This means at least 20% of households face extreme food shortages, 30% of children are acutely malnourished, and two in every 10,000 people die daily from starvation or related causes. According to the UN, Sudan is the ‘worst humanitarian nightmares in recent history‘, and in 2024, Sudan became the world’s largest displacement crisis.
In addition to Al Fasher and the entire Darfur region, the Kordofan region is also a danger zone and highly in need of humanitarian aid. The hardest-hit are Al Fasher’s Zamzam and the adjoining Abu Shouk camps, and the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan. As the war in Sudan enters its third year, regions such as Darfur and Kordofan remain in alarming conditions due to famine and disease, and becoming the main battlegrounds for the RSF and SAF.
People who have managed to flee Al Fasher fled 60 km away to Tawila, a town in North Darfur, where many humanitarian organisations are providing aid to survivors. Over 26,000 people have fled to Tawila and are in need of aid – medical support, food, water and shelter.
Rape and Sexual Violence Crisis
This year, UNICEF and Amnesty International have harrowing reports on the rape and sexual violence crisis in the ongoing war.
In March 2025, UNICEF has published the report, “Sudan’s Child Rape and Sexual Violence Crisis,” highlighting the voices of courageous and resilient women and girls interviewed by UNICEF in an effort to increase the attention, protection and aid children in Sudan receive. The data recorded 221 rape cases against children since the beginning of 2024. There are an additional 77 cases of sexual assault against children, primarily attempted rapes cases. The child rape cases occurred in nine states in Sudan, from south to north and east to west. Of the 221 child rape survivors, 147 children are girls. That is 66% and 33% are boys. 16 child rape survivors were under the age of five, including four one-year-olds.
In April 2025, Amnesty International published the report, “They raped all of us: Sexual violence against women and girls in Sudan,” documenting the RSF’s soldiers raping or gang-raping 36 women and girls as young as 15, plus other forms of sexual violence, in four Sudanese states between April 2023 and October 2024. Violations include raping a mother after tearing away her breastfeeding baby and the 30-day sexual enslavement of a woman in Khartoum, as well as severe beatings, torture with hot liquid or sharp blades, and murder.
US Travel Ban
As of 14 March 2025, the Trump Administration announced that its considering implementing comprehensive travel restrictions affecting citizens from 43 countries, including Sudan and South Sudan.
Red List (full visa suspensions): 11 countries, including Sudan, may face complete visa suspensions.These countries would be flatly barred from entering the US. This list was formed by the State Department a few weeks ago and changes could well be made.
Orange List (partial visa suspensions): 10 countries, including South Sudan, could experience sharp restrictions on specific visa categories that would impact tourist and student visas as well as other immigrant visas, with some exceptions.
However, in December 2025, the US travel ban expanded, barring nationals of South Sudan and four additional countries from entering the US. In addition to South Sudan, the full-entry restrictions will be imposed on people from Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Syria and Palestine and will come into force on 1 January 2026.
The Arrest and Sentence of Ali Kushayb
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has sentenced Ali Muhammad Ali Abdulrahman, better known as Ali Kushayb, a former commander of the Janjaweed militia, to 20 years in prison for committing atrocities in the Darfur region.
The 76-year-old was sentenced on 9 December 2025 following his conviction on 6 October 2025 for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Kushayb is accused of 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Darfur, particularly Kodoom, Bindisi, Mukjar, and Arawala, between August 2003 and March 2004. He was convicted by the ICC on 6 October 2025 for 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between August 2003 and March 2004.
Who Sudan Lost in 2025
2025 has been marked by the loss of many extraordinary personalities that helped shape Sudan in one way or another. As the world mourned the loss of Pope Francis, Jane Goodall, Diane Keaton, Gene Hackman, Robert Redford, D’Angelo, and many more, Sudan mourned the loss of some of the country’s greatest national and social icons such as Dr Gaafar Ibnauf (1942–2025), Mohammed Faisal Al Jazzar, Mohamed Tahir Ayala (1951–2025) and Dr Abdelgader Salem (1946–2025).
The Good News
Return to Sudan
With relative safety emerging in some parts of Sudan, over 1.3 million Sudanese people, including one million who were internally displaced and over 300,000 refugees, have returned home, according to UN agencies.
Most of the returnees are heading to Khartoum, Al Gezira and Sennar states where the impact of the conflict is still very acute.
In late 2024, the SAF recaptured several major cities and states such as Khartoum and Al Gezira from the RSF, restoring a sense of safety that has prompted many Sudanese to return to their homes, both from within the country and abroad. However, many have come back to find their homes destroyed or ransacked, and to communities where resources have been severely depleted by over two years of war. Basic services such as water and electricity are slowly being restored, but healthcare remains a major concern, with most hospitals damaged or destroyed during the conflict. In addition, public infrastructure as roads and power plants has been compromised or destroyed.
Reopening of Khartoum International Airport (KIA)
The reopening of Khartoum International Airport (KIA) was meant to officially softly open on 1 October 2025. However, a day after the first passenger flight, Badr Airlines, in two years landed in the city amid the civil war, the RSF targeted Khartoum and its main airport with drones on 23 October 2025. The official reopening of the airport is yet to be revealed or announced.
Sudan National Football Team Achievements
The Sudan National Football Team, known as the Falcons of Jediane, has been making significant strides in recent years. In 2025, they stunned many with their skill and achievements, including qualifying for the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024, held from 2 to 30 August 2025, where they finished in fourth place; qualifying for the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2025™, which took place from 1 to 18 December 2025; and qualifying for TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025, which is currently taking place from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.
Sudan has defeated Equatorial Guinea 1-0 in a Group E match at the ongoing AFCON 2025 on 28 December. The victory marked Sudan’s first at the AFCON since 2012. Although Sudan won the tournament in 1970, this was just their second win in 18 matches across six AFCON appearances since then. Ranked 117th in the FIFA standings, the result stands as a rare and resonant triumph.
Successful Sudanese Film Achievements
The Sudanese film Cotton Queen, directed by Sudanese-Russian filmmaker Suzannah Mirghani, and Sudanese filmmaker Eiman Mirghani were among the winners at the inaugural edition of Doha Film Festival (DFF), which took place from 20 to 28 November 2025 in Doha, Qatar. Suzannah’s debut feature Cotton Queen won the Audience Award, while Eiman received Best Director for her short documentary Villa 187. The much-anticipated Cotton Queen debuted in Critics’ Week at the 2025 Venice Film Festival.
The DFF also featured a special showcase of Sudanese music, highlighting the creativity and rich heritage of a nation whose stories continue to inspire the world. Complementing the film screenings, Sounds of Sudan featured performances by an exceptional lineup of artists including rapper Oddisee, soul artist Gaidaa, multi-instrumentalist artist Sammany Hajo, Sudanese band Karet Safer, and DJ Nedz, representing the diverse range of contemporary Sudanese music.
Other Important Sudanese Events and Achievements
Sudanese Actress Islam Mubarak Receives Award at Hollywood Arab Film Festival
Sudanese actress Islam Mubarak received the Special Jury Prize for her outstanding performance in the Egyptian film Seret Ahl El Daye (The Tale of Daye’s Family) by Egyptian director Karim El Shenawyn at the Hollywood Arab Film Festival (HAFF) 2025, which took place from 9 to 13 April 2015 at Look Cinema Glendale in Los Angeles (LA), California.
SudaPass: Sudan’s First Unified National Digital ID
The Ministry of Telecommunications and Digital Transformation (MTDT) announced on 1 December 2025 that it is set to launch SudaPass, the country’s first unified national digital identity platform, as part of its strategy to modernise Sudan’s digital services infrastructure and establish a secure, reliable electronic verification ecosystem nationwide.
“Seeing Sudan: Politics Through Art” – A Landmark Conference Amid War
A three-day landmark conference on Sudan, titled Seeing Sudan: Politics Through Art, took place in Doha, Qatar, from 18–20 September 2025. Held at the Four Seasons Hotel Doha, the event will bring together academics, artists, journalists, and activists to generate critical insights and explore the role of art and creative expression during times of violence, war, and displacement. Organised by Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), the conference is the 10th installment of GU-Q’s acclaimed Hiwaraat series. The Hiwaraat Conference Series offers timely and topical conferences that draw together experts, practitioners, scholars, policymakers, and youth to discuss some of the most pressing topics of our time.
Backup Dancer Raises Sudan and Palestine Flags at Kendrick Lamar’s NFL Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show
During American rapper Kendrick Lamar’s NFL Super Bowl LIX halftime show on 9 February 2025 at the Super Dome in New Orleans, the US, a backup dancer later identified as 41-year-old Zül-Qarnain Nantambu, a Muslim American artist based in New Orleans, the US, and self-proclaimed freedom fighter, displayed Sudanese and Palestinian flags on stage, highlighting the ongoing conflicts in Sudan and Gaza.
He ran around the field for about 20 seconds with the flags stitched on top of each other, the Sudanese flag followed by the Palestinian flag with Sudan written on the Sudanese flag with a heart drawing and Gaza written on the Palestinian flag with a raised clenched fist drawing. He was then tackled by security. Nantambu concealed the flags under his clothes before unfurling them and running around the field.
Leila Aboulela Shares PEN Pinter Prize 2025 with Stella Gaitano
On 10 October 2025, Scottish-Sudanese author Leila Aboulela, the winner of the PEN Pinter Prize 2025, selected South Sudanese writer Stella Gaitano as her co-winner in cooperation with English PEN.
Gaitano was named Writer of Courage 2025, which is awarded to an author who is active in defence of freedom of expression, often at great risk to their own safety and liberty, and shares the PEN Pinter Prize with the winner.
The announcement was made on 10 October in an address at the British Library, where Aboulela was joined by British-Egyptian poet, playwright, and writer Sabrina Mahfouz, who delivered an encomium.
Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) Receive Rafto Prize for Human Rights 2025
Sudan’s Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) have received the Rafto Prize for Human Rights 2025 during a ceremony on 9 November 2025 in Bergen, Norway, in recognition of their courageous work saving lives and strengthening communities in the midst of one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. The ERRs were first announced as winners on 17 September 2025.
The ERRs has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 for the second year in a row. This was announced on 18 September 2025. Last year, the ERRs were nominated by Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) for the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize their critical role in providing lifesaving aid amidst one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. However, they did not receive the award.
New Slogan
In late December 2025, the Transitional Sovereign Council (TSC) unveiled a new slogan to mark the 70th anniversary of Sudan’s independence on 1 January. The slogan reads: “And tomorrow we return… we will definitely return.”
