The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) announced today (Tuesday) that at least 11,000 people have gone missing in Sudan since the outbreak of the war three years ago, highlighting the “deep and ongoing psychological suffering” experienced by families.
In a statement received by Agence France-Presse in Geneva, the ICRC said: “Thousands of families are still waiting for news about their loved ones from whom they were separated while fleeing the fighting.”
The organization added: “The number of missing persons cases has exceeded 11,000, an increase of more than 40 percent in the past year alone.”
James Reynolds, Deputy Regional Director of the ICRC, told journalists: “These figures, which likely represent only a small fraction of the true numbers, demonstrate the human cost of prolonged conflicts like this one,” noting that shifting front lines have displaced more than 11 million people, some multiple times.
The ICRC further stated that among those displaced, 4 million people have fled the country. It also confirmed that the destruction of many communication networks has led to “countless families losing contact with their loved ones, with uncertainty about their fate causing deep and ongoing psychological distress.”
The organization reported that it has helped hundreds of families reconnect with relatives. Red Cross and Red Crescent societies in Sudan facilitated more than 560,000 phone calls in 2025, as well as in Egypt, South Sudan, and Chad. Reynolds added that 1,100 missing persons cases have been resolved.
