In 2026, Sudan marks three years of a war that has devastated cities, collapsed essential services, and forced millions of people to flee. Among them are our Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) colleagues, who make daily efforts to sustain hope.
Each of our Sudanese colleagues has lost something because of the war. From the most evident losses—their loved ones, relatives, and friends, and everything they had built through a lifetime of work—to those that may seem simple at first glance — their routines, their sense of achievement, and their peace of mind.
Yet every single day they wake up and step outside their homes to reach MSF facilities and offices. They do so to help others whose lives have also been stripped of almost everything dear to them. Our Sudanese colleagues — 1,470 locally hired staff and 5,500 Ministry of Health staff supported by MSF1—are the pillars that sustain MSF’s work in the country.
Since April 2023, Sudan has endured a brutal conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The fighting has forced more than 13 million people to flee their homes and has led to the collapse of essential services. An estimated 25 million people are now food insecure according to UN, and many are suffering from malnutrition. Civilians, including children, have been victims of attacks, ethnically motivated atrocities, kidnappings, torture, and sexual violence.
We asked our colleagues to tell us what the war has taken from them and what motivates them to continue working despite these losses. Their stories show that the conflict affects not only those seeking care but also those providing it.
Dr Altayeb, an orthopaedic surgeon in North Darfur, fled El Fasher and arrived at Tawila hospital one week before the city was fully taken over by the RSF. He and his wife left behind the comfortable life they had built for themselves in a pleasant part of the city. In the months leading up to their escape, that life had become unbearable. “There was a great danger because the shelling could start at any moment,” he says.
Two weeks after the takeover of El Fasher, his first task as a surgeon at MSF’s hospital in Tawila was to clean and suture the wound of a patient who had lost part of his leg during the capture of the city. By coincidence, this patient was Dr Altayeb’s distant cousin, who had to travel three days by donkey cart with an open wound from a stray bullet before reaching the hospital.
Dr Altayeb’s initial motivation for fleeing was to find a safe place for his pregnant wife to give birth. His motivation for continuing to provide care, however, comes from his patients. “Some of my patients from there are now here,” he says.
In El Geneina, West Darfur, the first thing the war took away from Sondos was the chance to graduate. “When the war started, I was in my final year, but my university closed and never reopened,” she says. “The war took away my greatest achievement.”
Without a certificate, she cannot work as a nurse, so she works as a medical interpreter at El Geneina Teaching hospital. The conflict also forced some of her family members to flee the city for three months. When they returned, she discovered that her brother, her aunt, and several other relatives had died.
“It became the most difficult year of my life,” she says. But with the strength she had left, she joined a group of volunteers who reopened the hospital's emergency room. “We just wanted to help our community because they were suffering and had no facilities. We worked until MSF returned to the hospital, and then we could continue the work with them to provide the services”, she explains.
At the maternity ward, Sondos works with Hagwa, a Ministry of Health nurse incentivised by MSF. Hagwa says that one of the main losses caused by the conflict is the erosion of trust within the community.
“Before the war, all Sudanese people were the same - kind, loving, and caring for each other. But now, because of the war, we see bad behaviour among us,” she says. “Families have also been separated and scared. Our home is no longer safe,” she says.
When the war erupted, Dr Al Douri was forcibly displaced from Khartoum, his home city. When he returned, he found his home in ruins and himself among the millions of Sudanese who had lost everything. Now, at Bashair Teaching hospital, he sees “pain and despair” in every patient.
Working also in camps, he meets families who have travelled for days for safety. “Many arrive in an advanced state of malnutrition and disease,” he says. He describes the ongoing crisis as a staggering blow to a 'peaceful and very welcoming' people.
“We found ourselves in a war that took everything from us,” he reflects.
Yet he refuses to surrender to bitterness. He carries a defiant message for his fellow Sudanese: “Do not lose hope. One day we will be united once again in this homeland.”
But for that to happen, he sa
Each of our Sudanese colleagues has lost something because of the war. From the most evident losses—their loved ones, relatives, and friends, and everything they had built through a lifetime of work—to those that may seem simple at first glance — their routines, their sense of achievement, and their peace of mind.
Yet every single day they wake up and step outside their homes to reach MSF facilities and offices. They do so to help others whose lives have also been stripped of almost everything dear to them. Our Sudanese colleagues — 1,470 locally hired staff and 5,500 Ministry of Health staff supported by MSF1—are the pillars that sustain MSF’s work in the country.
Since April 2023, Sudan has endured a brutal conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The fighting has forced more than 13 million people to flee their homes and has led to the collapse of essential services. An estimated 25 million people are now food insecure according to UN, and many are suffering from malnutrition. Civilians, including children, have been victims of attacks, ethnically motivated atrocities, kidnappings, torture, and sexual violence.
We asked our colleagues to tell us what the war has taken from them and what motivates them to continue working despite these losses. Their stories show that the conflict affects not only those seeking care but also those providing it.
Dr Altayeb, an orthopaedic surgeon in North Darfur, fled El Fasher and arrived at Tawila hospital one week before the city was fully taken over by the RSF. He and his wife left behind the comfortable life they had built for themselves in a pleasant part of the city. In the months leading up to their escape, that life had become unbearable. “There was a great danger because the shelling could start at any moment,” he says.
Two weeks after the takeover of El Fasher, his first task as a surgeon at MSF’s hospital in Tawila was to clean and suture the wound of a patient who had lost part of his leg during the capture of the city. By coincidence, this patient was Dr Altayeb’s distant cousin, who had to travel three days by donkey cart with an open wound from a stray bullet before reaching the hospital.
Dr Altayeb’s initial motivation for fleeing was to find a safe place for his pregnant wife to give birth. His motivation for continuing to provide care, however, comes from his patients. “Some of my patients from there are now here,” he says.
In El Geneina, West Darfur, the first thing the war took away from Sondos was the chance to graduate. “When the war started, I was in my final year, but my university closed and never reopened,” she says. “The war took away my greatest achievement.”
Without a certificate, she cannot work as a nurse, so she works as a medical interpreter at El Geneina Teaching hospital. The conflict also forced some of her family members to flee the city for three months. When they returned, she discovered that her brother, her aunt, and several other relatives had died.
“It became the most difficult year of my life,” she says. But with the strength she had left, she joined a group of volunteers who reopened the hospital's emergency room. “We just wanted to help our community because they were suffering and had no facilities. We worked until MSF returned to the hospital, and then we could continue the work with them to provide the services”, she explains.
At the maternity ward, Sondos works with Hagwa, a Ministry of Health nurse incentivised by MSF. Hagwa says that one of the main losses caused by the conflict is the erosion of trust within the community.
“Before the war, all Sudanese people were the same - kind, loving, and caring for each other. But now, because of the war, we see bad behaviour among us,” she says. “Families have also been separated and scared. Our home is no longer safe,” she says.
When the war erupted, Dr Al Douri was forcibly displaced from Khartoum, his home city. When he returned, he found his home in ruins and himself among the millions of Sudanese who had lost everything. Now, at Bashair Teaching hospital, he sees “pain and despair” in every patient.
Working also in camps, he meets families who have travelled for days for safety. “Many arrive in an advanced state of malnutrition and disease,” he says. He describes the ongoing crisis as a staggering blow to a 'peaceful and very welcoming' people.
“We found ourselves in a war that took everything from us,” he reflects.
Yet he refuses to surrender to bitterness. He carries a defiant message for his fellow Sudanese: “Do not lose hope. One day we will be united once again in this homeland.”
But for that to happen, he sa