Members of the United Nations Security Council condemned the creation of a parallel government in Sudan by the militia group, Rapid Support Forces, and its allies. A UN envoy told them that “relentless conflicts [had] turned Sudan into a hellscape”.
The 15 United Nations (UN) members gathered at the Security Council in New York on Wednesday, 26 February expressed "deep concern, trouble, and worry" about the continuing violence
The Security Council was reacting to a charter signed by the militia group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its allies, which aims to establish a government in the territories they control in Sudan.
Led by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (known as Hemeti), the RSF controls most of Darfur and parts of the south. One of its allies, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, governs areas in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.
The alliance between the SPLM-N and RSF has resulted in greater control over southern Sudan and grants access to borders with Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, and Ethiopia.
Council members react
The United States representative, John Kelley, said that attempts to create a government in RSF-controlled territory “risks a de facto partition of the country”.
US sanctions Sudan's RSF leader over genocide claims but critics say it is not enough
The British Ambassador, Barbara Woodward, added, “Deepened divisions risk even further destabilisation in Sudan and the region."
Elsewhere, Chinese Ambassador Fu Cong warned that the charter "increases the risks of Sudan’s fragmentation," while Joonkook Hwang, the Republic of Korea’s representative, highlighted a contradiction between the RSF’s stated aim of forming a peaceful, unified government and its actions on the ground. Algeria’s representative, Toufik Laid Koudri, described the move as "a dangerous step".
France, meanwhile, is supporting calls by the African Union and the UN for a ceasefire across Sudan during the month of Ramadan.
Last January, the US affirmed that RSF committed genocide in western Darfur.
Foreign interests
The UN Council stressed the “imperative” need to preserve Sudan’s unity and territorial integrity after RSF and its allies signed the charter in Nairobi on last Saturday, 22 February. The Sudanese government, for its part, has accused Kenya of supporting RSF and in protest, recalled its ambassador from Nairobi last week.
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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has repeatedly been accused by both the UN and the United States of supplying weapons to the RSF, claims that Abu Dhabi has denied.
Both Kenya and the UAE signed an economic agreement, on 14 January, which they described as the first of its kind signed between the UAE and an African country.
Edem Wosornu, OCHA’s operations director, told SC members yesterday that the UN requires $6 billion to support close to 21 million people in Sudan and up to five million others in neighbouring countries.
“The already catastrophic situation in Sudan has worsened in recent weeks,” Wosornu added.
Intensified fighting in North Darfur forced the World Food Programme to suspend food aid in Zamzam displacement camp of half a million people.
