SOS Balkanroute: Sudanese Flee War And Lose Their Future At Europe’s Border

SOS Balkanroute Helps Where Europe Fails

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(Übersetzt aus dem Englischen)

The war in Sudan has forced 15 million people to flee their homes.

Around 60–65% of those displaced remain inside Sudan, and an estimated 90–95% of Sudanese who leave the country stay within Africa — primarily in neighboring states such as Chad, South Sudan, Egypt, and Libya.

The escape routes out of Sudan are extremely dangerous. Along the paths through the Sahara, across Libya and Egypt, or toward the Mediterranean, people face severe and often life‑threatening risks, including:

• Mass graves in the desert

• Violence by border police

• Sexual abuse

• Mass detention, exploitation, and forced labor

• Homelessness and lack of medical care

• Drowning in the Mediterranean

• Brutal pushbacks at European borders

• Frostbite and death from cold on northern routes

• Unfair trials, often without lawyers or interpreters

Even those who survive the journey often encounter further violence, racism, exploitation, bureaucratic dead ends, and chronic health consequences in transit and destination countries.

SOS Balkanroute operates in Bosnia and Herzegovina, along the route at the border with Croatia. They also collaborate with partners in other countries along the Balkan route. The initiative supports people on the move in situations where they are most affected by violence, pushbacks and extreme hardship.

Illegal Pushbacks at the EU’s External Borders

The importance of SOS Balkanroute’s work becomes especially clear in the following case.

After an illegal pushback at the Croatian–Bosnian border, three young men from Sudan were found in the Plješevica mountains near Bihać, severely hypothermic and suffering from extensive frostbite. They survived a night in sub‑zero temperatures. All three later underwent double leg amputations; two of them also lost parts of their hands.

SOS Balkanroute then provided concrete support

• SIM cards, food, and personal items

• Three wheelchairs, organized through a nurse in their network

• Regular visits and ongoing support during rehabilitation

This case starkly illustrates the violence of pushbacks — and the essential humanitarian role SOS Balkanroute plays in supporting people on the move along this part of the Balkan route.

Coming Soon:

Part II on de:criminalize – In Greek prisons, an estimated 200–300 Sudanese people are incarcerated solely for the act of entry. Many receive life sentences.