Africa 

Sudan: UN ‘relief chief’ heads to the region as humanitarian crisis nears ‘breaking point’

“The scale and speed of what is unfolding is unprecedented in Sudan. We are extremely concerned by the immediate as well as long-term impact on all people in Sudan, and the broader region,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement. The UN again urged the warring sides to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, allow safe passage for civilians fleeing hostilities,… Read More
Africa 

Sudan latest: Tens of thousands on the move; spectre of ethnic clashes, hunger draws closer

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said that tens of thousands of refugees from South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea living in the country have fled the fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the Khartoum area. The newly displaced have found shelter in existing refugee camps further east and south, creating new humanitarian challenges. UNHCR is also particularly… Read More
Africa 

Background to a crisis: In Sudan, the stakes are high for the whole of Africa 

Since then, the country has been without a civilian-led government. A subsequent political process facilitated jointly by the United Nations, the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) resulted in an agreement being signed in December 2022 between the military and some key civilian political stakeholders, jumpstarting efforts aimed at restoring a credible democratic civilian government. At the… Read More
Africa 

UN humanitarians will return to Khartoum ‘as quickly as possible’: UN aid coordinator

Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Abdou Dieng, speaking from Port Sudan, told reporters in the briefing room in New York that senior leadership would be returning to the Sudanese capital, as soon as the situation allows. The needs are urgent, and widespread, he said, as the final few hours of a US-brokered 72-hour ceasefire neared, with fighting continuing. Hundreds have been… Read More
Africa 

Sudan envoy calls for ceasefire compliance, as concern mounts over West Darfur

Volker Perthes, who is also head of UN Transition Assistance Mission UNITAMS, welcomed the lull in fighting in some parts of the country between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and paramilitaries from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), noting that “it is not being fully respected”. He called on both sides to stick to the final day of the agreed ceasefire,… Read More
Africa 

Power struggle imperils Sudan’s future, ‘lights fuse that could detonate across borders’

António Guterres was addressing an emergency session of the UN Security Council in New York, and again demanded an end to the fighting between troops loyal to Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) leader Fatttah al-Burhan, and his deputy on the so-called Transitional Sovereign Council, Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo “Hemedti”. “It is incumbent on Sudanese leaders to put… Read More
Africa 

Sudan: UN aid operation continues amid dire humanitarian conditions

Ten days of fighting between rival military forces have had a devastating impact on the country’s population. The UN humanitarian affairs office (OCHA) warned that people are lacking food, water, medicines and fuel, power is limited, and the prices of essential items as well as transport have skyrocketed. OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told reporter in Geneva that the people of… Read More
Africa 

UN pledges to ‘stand with and work for the Sudanese people’

Speaking in the UN Security Council, António Guterres said: “Let me be clear: the United Nations is not leaving Sudan. Our commitment is to the Sudanese people, in support of their wishes for a peaceful and secure future. We stand with them, at this terrible time.” In blunt terms, he said the violence must stop, now. “It risks a catastrophic conflagration within… Read More
Africa 

UN coordinator calls for urgent ‘humanitarian pauses’ in Sudan, as death toll mounts

“I am horrified by the toll the clashes are having on civilians”, said Abdou Dieng. “At least 331 people have been killed nationwide, including five aid workers, and nearly 3,200 have been injured.” The fighting between troops from the national army and a powerful rival militia known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted six days ago, and has had a devastating impact… Read More
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