On Wednesday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that the UN is collaborating closely with the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to end the conflict in Sudan.
On 15 April, fighting erupted between Sudan’s de facto leader, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who commands the regular army, and his deputy turned rival, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
“All parties must prioritise the interests of the Sudanese people, which means returning to civilian rule and allowing the country to develop. We are putting these goals front and centre as we engage with conflict parties and collaborate with the African Union and the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) “, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
The Sudanese conflict has resulted in a massive exodus of over 100,000 refugees to neighbouring countries.
“It is absolutely essential to massively support Chad in the present situation. On the other hand, we have other countries in the region that are in their own peace processes. Ethiopia is in a peace process. It is absolutely essential to avoid any spill-over from Sudan to Ethiopia“, alerted the UN official.
Speaking during a press conference held in Nairobi, Guterres admitted that “the UN was taken by surprise” by the conflict, adding “to the extent that we and many others were not expecting this to happen, we can say we failed to avoid it to happen”.
The fighting in Sudan has killed at least 550 people.
The warring sides have announced multiple truces but none has effectively taken hold.