Sudan has topped the Emergency Watchlist, issued the International Rescue Committee (IRC) aid organization, for the third year in a row.
Under the theme “New World Disorder,” the IRC 2026 Emergency Watchlist raises the alarm over declining global support needed to address mounting humanitarian crises.
Sudan Crisis
The war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan is now approaching its fourth year, with an estimated death toll exceeding 150,000 people since April 2023.
The conflict has left 67% of the population, almost half of them children, in humanitarian need, amid widespread famine and cholera outbreak, the report notes.
“Sudan remains in deep crisis, with over 10M people displaced and nearly half the population in need due to conflict, hunger, collapsed shelter and sanitation services and constrained health services,” IRC Sudan Environmental Health Senior Manager, Azza Ali, says.
“Combined with restricted humanitarian access, it is extremely difficult for many displaced people to return, even in accessible or stable areas,” she notes.
Sudan in 2026
As the war grinds on with no signs of de-escalation, the report also expects mass civilian casualties in 2026 as the brutal deadlock continues, accountability remains absent, and more sieges cut off aid and threaten the safety of millions.
Moreover, it projects an exacerbated famine affecting 40% of the population, and the two warring parties cutting humanitarian lifelines.
Foreign Meddling
The report also says that foreign powers profiting from the war in Sudan will continue to fuel the conflict, giving the warring parties little incentive to negotiate peace.
“What the IRC is seeing on the ground is not a tragic accident. The world is not simply failing to respond to crisis; actions and words are producing, prolonging, and rewarding it,” IRC CEO David Miliband said in a statement.
“The scale of the crisis in Sudan, ranking first on this year’s Watchlist for the third year in a row and now the largest humanitarian crisis ever recorded, is a signature of this disorder,” he added.
Since its outbreak in 2023, the war in Sudan has driven the country into effective partition, with the SAF controlling the center, north and east, while the RSF holds the entire Darfur region and parts of Kordofan in the south, with each side declaring a government.
The UAE has faced accusations from the SAF, as well as UN experts and humanitarian organizations, of arming the RSF with weapons and mercenaries. However, the Gulf country firmly rejects these claims.
IRC Emergency Watchlist
The IRC Emergency Watchlist is an annual assessment of the 20 countries at greatest risk of new or worsening humanitarian emergencies. The 2026 report highlights the 10 at greatest risk.
Despite having only 12% of the global population, these nations account for nearly 90% of the world’s humanitarian crisis. Unfortunately, the situation is set to worsen in 2026, with tens of millions suffering deeper hunger, displacement, and violence due to continued declines in international political attention and funding.
The IRC 2026 Emergency Watchlist:
- Sudan
- Occupied Palestinian territory
- South Sudan
- Ethiopia
- Haiti
- Myanmar
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Mali
- Burkina Faso
- Lebanon
