UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an urgent ceasefire in and around the besieged Sudanese city of El Fasher, where hundreds of thousands of civilians have been trapped for over a year.
Guterres expressed his shock at the “relentless attacks” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia targeting the capital of North Darfur, as reported by UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric on Friday.
Since April 2023, the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have been engaged in a fierce struggle for control of the war-torn nation, with El Fasher remaining the focal point of conflict for more than 500 days.
In recent weeks, the city has experienced near-constant shelling and multiple deadly incursions into the neighboring Abu Shouk displacement camp, where famine conditions were identified as early as last December.
The UN has recorded at least 125 civilian deaths in the El Fasher region since August 11, including instances of summary executions, though the actual toll is likely higher.
“The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the significant risks of serious violations of international humanitarian law and abuses of international human rights law, particularly those motivated by ethnic factors,” Dujarric stated.
While humanitarian supplies are pre-positioned near El Fasher, the UN and its partners continue to encounter challenges in delivering aid to the city. Currently, around 70 trucks of humanitarian assistance are waiting in Nyala, South Darfur, as reported by a senior official from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in New York on Thursday.
Dujarric also highlighted the increasing frequency of attacks on humanitarian workers and resources in North Darfur over the past months.
“The Secretary-General reiterates the urgent need for a ceasefire in and around El Fasher,” he stated. Additionally, Guterres “insists that immediate measures must be implemented to safeguard civilians and ensure the safe, unhindered, and continuous delivery of humanitarian aid to the region, as well as to facilitate the safe passage of any civilians wishing to exit the area.”
Meanwhile, the Secretary-General’s personal envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, continues to engage with the conflicting parties and “stands ready to support genuine efforts to end the violence and establish an inclusive political process that the people of Sudan are demanding.”
