NEW YORK CITY: Sudan’s ambassador at the UN, Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed has said that the government of Sudan has the security situation under control even as civilians and refugees are fleeing the fighting to neighbouring countries but are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.
Speaking at a press conference at the United Nations on Friday, the Sudan’s ambassador said that the “rebellion” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group of heavily armed militias, had failed to take control of the country. He claimed the government and its armed forces had the upper hand in the ongoing fighting, it had not declared a state of emergency and communication had not been disrupted.
It is to mention here that week-long peace talks between the two factions in Saudi Arabia had failed to end the conflict and yield a permanent ceasefire as of late Thursday. Several United Nations and international efforts to secure a ceasefire between the two factions have failed to take hold since the fighting started. Air strikes and heavy gunfighting were heard by Khartoum residents on Thursday. Mohamed said that women and children have been suffering in the main cities and at border crossings. “The humanitarian condition is bad,” he added.
According to the United Nations health agency, the death toll from the clashes in the war-torn country has risen to at least 604 people, including civilians. The Sudan’s ambassador said that there was an urgent need for mobile clinics, clean water, food and financial assistance, especially for those crossing into neighbouring countries.
He said that the Sudanese armed forces had complied with the international laws and treaties in allowing civilians to leave war zones and cross into the neighbouring states and had kept ports open for shipping and receiving.
Fighting began in Sudan on April 15 this year between General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan-led regular army and the RSF forces headed by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. The later attacked the army barracks in an attempt to dislodge military leaders from power days before an internationally-backed plan to transition power in the country to a civilian government.
The envoy said that Sudan’s permanent mission at the United Nations was in constant touch with the United Nations leadership to facilitate humanitarian aid and diplomatic efforts to contain the situation.
The war has led to more than 200,000 people fleeing the country with an estimated 800,000 people likely to cross the borders. Many United Nations and international agencies have suspended their work in the capital city of Khartoum and other main cities and moved to the Red Sea city of Port Sudan to coordinate the relief efforts.
