UN Chief Urges Ceasefire in El Fasher Amid Militia Attacks

A woman searches through the burnt remains of her shelter at a displacement camp in Darfur, Sudan.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday called for an immediate ceasefire in and around the besieged Sudanese city of El Fasher, where hundreds of thousands of civilians have been trapped for over a year.

Guterres said he was “appalled by the relentless attacks” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia on the North Darfur state capital, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement.

The paramilitary RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have been battling for control of the country since April 2023, with El Fasher remaining the epicentre of fighting for more than 500 days.

Recent weeks have seen near-continuous shelling of the city and repeated deadly incursions into the nearby Abu Shouk displacement camp, where famine conditions were identified last December. Since 11 August, the UN has documented at least 125 civilian deaths in the El Fasher area, including summary executions, though the actual number is likely higher.

“The Secretary-General is alarmed at the grave risks of serious violations of international humanitarian law, as well as abuses of international human rights law, including ethnically motivated ones,” Dujarric added.

Humanitarian supplies are pre-positioned near El Fasher, but the UN and partners continue to face obstacles in moving them into the city. Around 70 trucks of aid are currently waiting in Nyala, South Darfur, according to a top UN aid official. Dujarric also noted repeated attacks on humanitarian personnel and assets in North Darfur over recent months.

“The Secretary-General calls for an immediate ceasefire in and around the El Fasher area,” he said. He stressed that urgent steps must be taken to protect civilians, ensure safe and sustained delivery of humanitarian aid, and allow civilians wishing to leave to do so safely.

In the meantime, the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, continues engaging the warring parties and “stands ready to support genuine efforts to halt the violence and establish an inclusive political process that the people of Sudan demand.”