Sudanese Salma Al-Tayeb took a dangerous journey from war-torn Sudan to Libya more than two years ago, seeking refuge with her young children, as their father had to stay behind.

Now the family has finally reunited at their home in Omdurman.

The 33-year-old and her children were among the first group of Sudanese voluntarily returning from Libya, according to the family.

The family was only able to reunite after the Sudanese government launched a voluntary return initiative for displaced nationals wishing to go back from Libya.

Al-Tayeb and her two children took the first flight carrying Sudanese returnees from Libya's Mitiga airport to Port Sudan earlier this week, before she joined her husband in Omdurman, where she was received with tears and jubilation.

Having fled the escalating conflict in Sudan, Al-Tayeb had to cross the desert with her then four-month-old daughter and young son, she told Reuters, describing the difficulties they faced on their journey.

"We walked in the desert and we suffered. Our children got really exhausted in the desert. The road was very long and difficult until we arrived," Al-Tayeb said in Libya's Tripoli as she braced for going back home.

Sudan's war between the armed forces and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out in 2023 and has triggered what the U.N. calls the world's worst humanitarian disaster, killing hundreds of thousands of people through violence, hunger and disease, and forcing millions to flee.

Sudan's war erupted after the RSF and the Sudanese army fell out over plans to integrate their forces and transition to democracy.

The RSF quickly took over Khartoum but was pushed out last year. It has since consolidated control of the Darfur region in the west, and opened a new front, also marked by repeated drone attacks, in the Blue Nile state along the border with Ethiopia.

During the war, Al-Tayeb's husband, Yahia Idrees, who used to be a banker, lost his job. 

He said he tried to bring his family back ahead of the government-led initiative, but could not afford the $1,500 which their return tickets would have cost. 

"The war broke out. Suddenly, we lost our jobs and livelihood," he said.

Production: El Tayeb Siddig, Ayman Sahely, Hani Amara, Mai Shams El-Din/Reuters