The widespread use of rape and other sexual violence as a weapon of war in Sudan has spurred a massive mental health crisis, United Nations agencies and local aid groups warned.
The Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been locked in a brutal conflict since April 2023 that has killed tens of thousands and displaced around 11 million people.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders last month said at least 3,396 survivors of sexual violence -- nearly all of them women and girls -- sought treatment at facilities it supports in North and South Darfur between January 2024 and November 2025.
But the World Health Organization said Tuesday that the high numbers were likely just the "tip of the iceberg".
"Accessing services when you are raped is very, very challenging," Avni Amin, head of WHO's gender-based violence unit, told an event at the UN in Geneva, focused on Sudan's humanitarian and health emergency.
She pointed to a lack of security and difficulty reaching functioning healthcare establishments, and notably not enough health workers trained to deal with victims of sexual violence.
The huge stigma for survivors was also a major barrier, said Amin.
"For every woman who discloses, there are probably eight or nine women who've been raped and who will suffer in silence," she warned.
- 'No safety' - Niemat Ahmadi, of the Darfur Women Action Group, described horrific conditions for victims seeking care after violent gang rapes that have left them with complications, such as fistula, an incontinence-causing tear in the wall between the....
