The United Nations said Friday that Sudanese militias were besieging Darfur’s only unoccupied capital, warning that an attack would have “catastrophic consequences” for the city’s 800,000 residents. .
At the same time, the United Nations said the rival Sudanese military “appears to be entrenching its position.”
Sudanese conflict expands into major humanitarian safe zone
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres reiterated his call for paramilitary rapid support forces and government forces to refrain from fighting in the North Darfur region around the capital El Fasher, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
A year-long war between militias vying for power in Sudan and rival generals in the government has created a “crisis of epic proportions,” United Nations political director Rosemary DiCarlo said last Friday. He said it was being fueled by foreign backers who continue to ignore U.N. sanctions aimed at ending the conflict, adding: “This is illegal, it is immoral and it must stop.” did.
Sudanese children suffering from malnutrition receive treatment at an MSF clinic in Meche camp, Chad, near the Sudanese border, on April 6, 2024. On April 6, 2024, many people fleeing fighting in Sudan’s vast western Darfur region were attacked by Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces. Military action against African civilians revived memories of genocide. The United Nations said on Friday, April 26, that Sudanese militias are besieging the only unoccupied capital in the western region of Darfur, warning that an attack would have “devastating consequences” for the city’s 800,000 residents. I warned you that it would happen. (AP Photo/Patricia Simon)
The United Nations Humanitarian Office said on Friday that escalating tensions and clashes around El Fasher over the past two weeks have already displaced 40,000 people and claimed scores of civilian lives.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, known as OCHA, said: “Due to the security situation, humanitarian access to El Fasher has been effectively cut off.”
Humanitarian officials say El Fasher is a key location for aid shipments from neighboring Chad and for reaching other parts of the vast Darfur region, including via the northern route from Port Sudan on Sudan’s northeast coast. .
“Currently, more than a dozen trucks carrying life-saving supplies for 122,000 people are unable to proceed to El Fasher due to poor security and no guarantees of safe passage, leaving them in the neighboring northern state of Ado. They are stuck in dhabas,” OCHA said.
Dujarric said the Sudanese Secretary-General’s personal envoy, Ramtan Ramamala, was working with rival parties to de-escalate tensions, which have reportedly escalated dramatically.
OCHA also said that “it is essential that the parties allow safe passage for civilians from El Fasher to safer areas.”
In mid-April 2023, Sudan descended into chaos. Long-simmering tensions between General Abdul Fattah Burhan’s army and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have erupted into urban fighting in the capital, Khartoum. Fighting has spread to other parts of the country, particularly in urban areas and the western region of Darfur.
More than 14,000 people have been killed, tens of thousands injured, 25 million people need life-saving aid due to imminent famine, and more than 8.6 million people have been forced to flee their homes, the UN’s Mr Di Carlo said. A tragic picture of the effects of war.
During the war, Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces carried out brutal attacks on ethnic African civilians in Darfur, especially the Masalit people, and took control of much of the vast area, with El Fasher becoming their new target. became.
Twenty years ago, Darfur became synonymous with genocide and war crimes against people who identify as Central or East Africans, particularly by the notorious Janjaweed Arab militias.
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That legacy appears to be back, with Karim Khan, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, announcing in late January that there is reason to believe that both sides may be committing war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide in Darfur. said.
The Rapid Support Force was formed from Janjaweed fighters by former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who ruled the country for 30 years until he was overthrown in a 2019 uprising. He is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges including genocide. During the Darfur conflict in the 2000s.
