Nearly 4.65 million displaced civilians have returned to their home areas across Sudan, according to a report released Thursday by the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM). The milestone highlights a gradual decline in internal displacement as growing numbers of people head back following significant territorial shifts in the country’s ongoing civil war.
The updated figures are based on comprehensive surveys conducted at nearly 13,000 locations across 185 localities spanning all 18 Sudanese states. The IOM data shows that the total number of internally displaced people (IDPs) has fallen to roughly 8.69 million. This reflects a notable 25% drop from the highest recorded displacement levels and a 1% decrease from the previous month.
Of the 4.65 million individuals who have successfully returned to their communities across 74 localities, the vast majority—82%—returned from other internal displacement locations within the country. The remaining 18% made the journey back from outside Sudan’s borders.
Demographically, children continue to bear a heavy burden of the crisis. Minors under the age of 18 make up approximately half of both populations, accounting for 55% of all remaining internally displaced people and 50% of all returnees. Meanwhile, the overall volume of returnees continues to tick upward, registering a 5% increase compared to the previous month.
These shifting trends build on progress previously noted by the UN agency. On June 15, the IOM reported that internal displacement had dropped to about 8.8 million, while returnees numbered just over 4.4 million. Those figures marked a 24% decrease from the peak displacement crisis in January 2025, when the number of displaced individuals reached an alarming 11.6 million.
Analysts and humanitarian organizations attribute the steady decline in displacement and the rise in return movements to strategic military developments. Specifically, the Sudanese army has successfully retaken critical territories—including the states of Khartoum, Sennar, and Al-Jazirah—from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Despite the encouraging trends in population returns, humanitarian officials emphasize that Sudan’s broader crisis remains deeply acute. The devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF erupted in April 2023 following disputes over the proposed integration of the military forces. The protracted war has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people and, at its peak, displaced a staggering 13 million individuals, triggering one of the world’s most severe humanitarian emergencies.
