United Nations to Send Envoy to Address ‘Unprecedented’ Crisis in Sudan
Sudan during conflict between RSF and the Sudanese militaryInternationalIndiaAfricaMary ManleyOn Sunday Sudan entered their 16th day of violence. A three-day truce was agreed upon on Thursday after the US, Saudi Arabia, the African Union and the United Nations mediated on humanitarian efforts there. Thus far more than 500 people have been killed and thousands wounded since the violence first began.On Sunday United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced that he would be sending and envoy to the Sudan region. “In light of the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Sudan, the Secretary-General is sending the Emergency Relief Coordinator and Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, to the region immediately,” a spokesperson for Guterres said in a statement.”The scale and speed of what is unfolding is unprecedented in Sudan,” the statement said. “We are extremely concerned.”The UN has urged both Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RDF) to protect civilians as well as civilian infrastructure, humanitarian workers and assets, medical personnel, transport and facilities, according to the UN’s news site. Following air strikes in the capital of Khartoum, on Sunday the UN and other international interests appealed yet again for Generals Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Daglo to agree to a 72-hour ceasefire for another three days.“As the people of Sudan urgently need a humanitarian pause, the Trilateral Mechanism urges the parties to the conflict to respect the ceasefire, to protect civilians and to refrain from attacks on civilian populated areas, schools, and healthcare facilities,” the groups said in a statement.“This ceasefire would also pave the way for talks between both sides towards the establishment of a permanent cessation of hostilities,” they added.Friction between Sudan’s army and the RSF has been building since the two participated in a coup against the country’s civilian government in October of 2021. Since May of 2022, talks to restore civilian rule were on-going, but fell through on April 15 when when violent clashes broke out between the two forces.