Human Rights Watch calls for UN mission to protect civilians in Sudan

Human Rights Watch urged the UN on Monday to work swiftly with the African Union to deploy a mission to protect civilians in Sudan, Anadolu has reported. Hundreds more civilians have been killed in the country recently, and tens of thousands have been forced to flee by the warring Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces.

Earlier on Monday, the UN announced that around 143,000 people have been displaced from Al-Fasher in North Darfur State due to clashes between the army and the RSF militia. “Sudan continues to spiral into chaos, with the humanitarian crisis worsening and the horrific toll that the conflict is having on civilians in Al-Fasher and other conflict hotspots,” explained the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in a press release.

Since 10 May, Al-Fasher has witnessed clashes between the army and the RSF, despite international warnings about the fighting in the city, which is the hub for humanitarian operations for all of Darfur in the west of Sudan.

Fighting between the Sudanese army, led by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), has been ongoing since mid-April last year. Around 15,000 people have been killed, and around 8.5 million have been displaced, according to the UN.

There have been increasing UN and international calls to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan that could push millions into famine due to food shortages caused by the conflict, which has spread to 12 of the country’s 18 states.

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