UNICEF/Proscovia Nakibuuka. Displaced Sudanese children and families fled on foot following clashes in Wadmaidani, the capital of Jelajee state.
Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, issued a statement today calling on the international community to take immediate action in 2024 to contain the devastating conflict unfolding in Sudan.
Griffiths said that nearly nine months of war have plunged Sudan into a vicious cycle of deterioration, and the continued spread of the conflict has brought more suffering to the local population. At the same time, humanitarian assistance is dwindling and hope is dwindling. He stressed that this situation could not continue.
Griffiths stressed that in 2024, the international community must act now, especially countries and organizations with influence over all parties to the conflict in Sudan, and decisive measures must be taken to stop the fighting and guarantee humanitarian action aimed at helping millions of civilians.
Violations are on the rise
He pointed out that now the fighting has spread to Jera, known as the "breadbasket of Sudan", and the situation has taken a turn for the worse. Wad Maidani, the capital of Jera, and its environs have long been a haven for displaced people from other conflict zones, yet more than 500,000 people have now been forced to leave their homes by fighting. Ongoing mass displacement could also exacerbate the rapid spread of cholera outbreaks in the state, with more than 1,800 suspected cases reported to date.
A series of horrific human rights abuses reported in other conflict hotspots, such as Khartoum, Darfur and Kordofan, are now unfolding in Wadhadani. Massive human rights violations, including sexual violence, demonstrate that all parties to the conflict are still failing to fulfil their commitments to protect civilians.
Humanitarian relief operations are under threat
Griffiths noted that compliance with international humanitarian law is also a matter of grave concern. Given that Wadmadani is an important hub for humanitarian relief operations, the fighting on the ground and the looting of humanitarian warehouses and supplies have dealt a severe blow to efforts to provide food, water, health care and other critical assistance.
"I reiterate my strong condemnation of the looting of humanitarian supplies, which undermines our ability to save lives," he said. ”
In 2024, nearly 25 million people across Sudan are expected to be in need of humanitarian assistance. But the reality is grim, and the intensifying fighting is preventing most of them from receiving assistance. Deliveries across the conflict line have come to a standstill. While cross-border aid operations from Chad continue to provide a lifeline for people in Darfur, efforts to reach elsewhere are increasingly threatened.
Violence undermines regional stability
The violent conflict in the Sudan also threatens regional stability. The conflict has triggered the world's largest displacement crisis, with more than 7 million people forced to leave their homes, some 1.4 million of whom have fled to neighbouring countries, which already host large numbers of refugees.
Griffiths said that 2023 is a year of suffering for the Sudanese people. In 2024, all parties to the conflict must do three things to end this tragedy: protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian access, and immediately stop fighting.
