Sudan camp houses some of Africa's largest refugee populations – in pictures

  • An Eritrean youth peers into a clothes shop in the market at Shagarab refugee camp, which hosts more than 60,000 people, in Sudan. On its walls are signs from the UN warning residents about the dangers of following migration routes through deserts and across seas. Getty
    An Eritrean youth peers into a clothes shop in the market at Shagarab refugee camp, which hosts more than 60,000 people, in Sudan. On its walls are signs from the UN warning residents about the dangers of following migration routes through deserts and across seas. Getty
  • Alem Ande, from Eritrea, bakes bread to sell in the camp. She divorced her violent husband and was living in Hitsats camp in Tigray with her five children until war broke out in November 2020, when they fled to Sudan. Getty
    Alem Ande, from Eritrea, bakes bread to sell in the camp. She divorced her violent husband and was living in Hitsats camp in Tigray with her five children until war broke out in November 2020, when they fled to Sudan. Getty
  • Sabrina, 11, Donat, 13 and Surnk, 7, three of Alem Ande’s five children. Getty
    Sabrina, 11, Donat, 13 and Surnk, 7, three of Alem Ande’s five children. Getty
  • Hassan, 16, works at a market stall in Shagarab. The camp was set up in 1968 and lies about 70 kilometres west of the Eritrean border. Getty
    Hassan, 16, works at a market stall in Shagarab. The camp was set up in 1968 and lies about 70 kilometres west of the Eritrean border. Getty
  • Children play in Shagarab camp, where most of its 60,000 residents arrived from South Sudan, Eritrea, the Central African Republic, Ethiopia and Chad. Sudan hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa. Getty
    Children play in Shagarab camp, where most of its 60,000 residents arrived from South Sudan, Eritrea, the Central African Republic, Ethiopia and Chad. Sudan hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa. Getty
  • Abdualha, 28, sits in a shelter with his sick son at the camp in Sudan. ‘I left Eritrea last May to come to Sudan, looking for hope of a better life. My son needs an operation on his brain and I'm not able to find a doctor for him until now,’ he says. Getty
    Abdualha, 28, sits in a shelter with his sick son at the camp in Sudan. ‘I left Eritrea last May to come to Sudan, looking for hope of a better life. My son needs an operation on his brain and I'm not able to find a doctor for him until now,’ he says. Getty
  • Mohamed, 60, from Eritrea, rides on a bus with a goat to Shagarab refugee camp during the rainy season. More than 50,000 people have poured into Sudan since violence broke out between Ethiopian forces and the Tigray Peoples' Liberation Front in 2020. Getty
    Mohamed, 60, from Eritrea, rides on a bus with a goat to Shagarab refugee camp during the rainy season. More than 50,000 people have poured into Sudan since violence broke out between Ethiopian forces and the Tigray Peoples' Liberation Front in 2020. Getty
  • Carts carrying water for refugees at Shagarab camp are drawn by donkeys. Getty
    Carts carrying water for refugees at Shagarab camp are drawn by donkeys. Getty
  • Khalifa Ibrahim, 33, lives in the camp with his family after fleeing Eritrea and then Hitsats camp in Tigray. ‘On November 22, 2020, the war broke out between the TPLF and the Eritrean forces on the camp. I saw eight people die and 12 were injured, including me,' he says. Getty
    Khalifa Ibrahim, 33, lives in the camp with his family after fleeing Eritrea and then Hitsats camp in Tigray. ‘On November 22, 2020, the war broke out between the TPLF and the Eritrean forces on the camp. I saw eight people die and 12 were injured, including me,' he says. Getty
  • Khalifa Ibrahim shows an image of his X-ray at the camp. Getty
    Khalifa Ibrahim shows an image of his X-ray at the camp. Getty
  • Flmon, left, and Grmaoui wait in a transit centre for new refugee arrivals from Eritrea in Wadsharefy, the oldest camp in eastern Sudan. Flmon says he fled to the country to escape military service. ‘We cannot even breathe," he says. Getty
    Flmon, left, and Grmaoui wait in a transit centre for new refugee arrivals from Eritrea in Wadsharefy, the oldest camp in eastern Sudan. Flmon says he fled to the country to escape military service. ‘We cannot even breathe," he says. Getty
  • Women leave a Catholic church after prayers at Shagarab camp. Getty
    Women leave a Catholic church after prayers at Shagarab camp. Getty
  • An Eritrean shepherd takes his goats to the market at Shagarab. Getty
    An Eritrean shepherd takes his goats to the market at Shagarab. Getty
  • An Eritrean man rides his donkey-drawn cart to the market at the camp. Getty
    An Eritrean man rides his donkey-drawn cart to the market at the camp. Getty