United Nations officials renewed urgent calls Tuesday for an immediate cease-fire in Sudan, warning that external weapons supplies are fueling a conflict that has created famine conditions and displaced 11 million people.
“It is long past time for the warring parties to come to the negotiating table,” U.N. political chief Rosemary DiCarlo told the Security Council. “To put it bluntly, certain purported allies of the parties are enabling the slaughter in Sudan. This is unconscionable, it is illegal, and it must end.”
The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has intensified as both sides receive foreign arms support. Russia and Egypt reportedly supply the SAF, while Sudanese officials accuse the United Arab Emirates of channeling weapons to RSF through Chad, an allegation the UAE denies despite U.N. expert findings supporting reports of UAE cargo planes delivering arms via eastern Chad.
The humanitarian toll continues to mount, with half of Sudan’s 25 million people facing crisis-level food insecurity. In North Darfur’s capital El Fasher, where RSF forces battle to capture the city from SAF defenders, more than 1.5 million civilians are trapped. The Zamzam displaced persons camp reports 33% of children malnourished, including 10% severely, according to Ramesh Rajasingham, U.N. humanitarian affairs director.
“In North Darfur, fighting in and around El Fasher continues to intensify and block the movement of aid supplies into the area,” Rajasingham said. Recent RSF attacks in eastern Al Jazirah state have displaced tens of thousands more civilians, with reports of over 120 deaths, widespread rape, and destruction of homes and farms.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield urged Sudan to keep the Adre border crossing with Chad open indefinitely, noting it has enabled aid delivery to 1.9 million people since mid-August. The Security Council is drafting a resolution focused on civilian protection and cease-fire mediation, while its sanctions committee has designated two RSF commanders for penalties over violence in Darfur.
“The international community must take what’s happening in Sudan seriously and must take urgent action to address it,” Rajasingham warned as the conflict continues to spread.
Source: VOA
