Women, children trapped in Khartoum church as Sudan's civil war rages

Trapped in a Catholic mission sheltering dozens of women and children from the war raging on the streets of Khartoum, Father Jacob Thelekkadan has punched new holes in his belt as the supplies of food dwindled and he grew thinner.

Around 80 people are taking refuge inside the Dar Mariam mission, a Catholic church and school compound in Khartoum's al Shajara district.

They are caught in the crossfire between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to accounts by the priest and seven other people at the mission.

The roof of the main building has been damaged by shells, and parts of the nuns' quarters have been set ablaze. Holes caused by stray bullets mark the mission's walls.

Numbers have fluctuated, but since March about 30 women along with 50 children aged 2-15 have stayed at the mission, according to Thelekkadan.

His account was confirmed by two of the nuns, an administrator and four women sheltering at the mission, two other priests who have kept in touch with Dar Mariam, and an army intelligence officer responsible for churches in Khartoum.

Those staying at the mission are mostly Christian refugees from South Sudan and Ethiopia, who set up tents made from plastic sheeting around the compound's buildings, which include a church, a school and a residence.

Extreme hunger

A Red Cross effort to rescue them in December ended with two dead and seven others wounded, including three of charity's staff, after gunmen opened fire on the convoy, forcing it to turn back before it could reach the mission.

The warring sides traded blame for the attack.

Thelekkadan said he and the nuns had refused offers from the army to ferry them out across the river permanently, leaving the families behind.

"When the road is safe, we will be the first to leave, but with the people," said Thelekkadan, a 69-year-old Indian national.

Extreme hunger has spread across Sudan in areas worst affected by the conflict, prompting famine warnings for areas including in Khartoum.

The nuns have boiled tree leaves for the children to eat and many of the adults have skipped meals.

"Our food situation became very bad," said Thelekkadan. "We're all very weak."

10 million displaced

Sudan's war has created the world's biggest internal displacement crisis and has driven nearly 10 million people to seek shelter inside or outside the country, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Some families took shelter at the mission in June last year, hoping for protection from its concrete roof.

But the area soon became cut off as the RSF pressed to capture the strategic Armoured Corps camp about 2 kilometres away, one of several military bases it was targeting, Thelekkadan said.

Al Shajara district has come under heavy attack by the RSF. Those living nearby with the money to do so have registered with the military to be taken across the Nile; some have been waiting for months.

Those staying at the mission are mostly Christian refugees from South Sudan and Ethiopia, who set up tents made from plastic sheeting around the compound's buildings, which include a church, a school and a residence.

When fighting starts nearby, they take cover inside the residence. Some poor Sudanese Muslim families have also sought temporary shelter at the mission.

The mission's residents had been trying to survive "a lot of shooting and bombing," sister Miriam, one of the nuns, told Reuters in a video call.

"We got used to it and we are not afraid. God is protecting us, but we are waiting for evacuation," she said.