The United Nations has strongly condemned the assassination of a presidential candidate in Ecuador, urging authorities to investigate the crime.
The United Nations has strongly condemned the assassination of a presidential candidate in Ecuador, urging authorities to investigate the crime.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY-GENERAL MARTHA AMA A. POBEE’S
REMARKS TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON
SUDAN
New York, 9 AUGUST 2023
Madame President
Members of the Security Council,
Thank you for this opportunity to brief you on the situation in Sudan.
More than one hundred days have passed since the eruption of fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.
Clashes between these parties continue in various parts of the country, particularly Khartoum, Bahri, Omdurman and Darfur, with neither side achieving victory nor making any significant gains. Khartoum State remains an epicenter of the conflict, with major combat concentrated around key SAF installations including the Sudanese Armed Forces General Command Headquarters. Fighting is continuing in neighborhoods. This week, the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces both ordered residents to leave their homes in a part of Omdurman, declaring it “an area of operations”.
The parties have exacted tremendous suffering on the people of the Darfur region. The fighting in Darfur continues to reopen the old wounds of ethnic tension of past conflicts in the region. The brutal violence experienced in El Geneina and Sirba are particular examples of this situation. This is deeply worrying and could quickly engulf the country in a prolonged ethnic conflict with regional spill overs. The initiative by Chad to convene a grouping of Darfurian stakeholders to address the situation in the region is therefore welcome and should be built upon while ensuring the participation of broad range of stakeholders including armed groups, tribal leaders, civil society, and women’s groups.
The situation in the two Kordofan and the Blue Nile States of Sudan continues to be fragile, with persistent military actions and frequent road closures. In North Kordofan, SAF controls El Obeid city while RSF is controlling areas around the city.
Since June, the SPLM-North Al Hilu faction has continued to make military advancements in SAF-controlled areas in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, in which SPLM-N claims is an attempt to take back territory previously taken from them.
While the East is relatively calm, there are indications of active mobilization efforts in support of SAF, with the emergence of mobilization committees and establishment of military training camps. The mobilization is particularly worrisome and risk plunging the East into conflict along ethnic lines, further highlighting the fragility of the region.
The Northern part of the country remains under Sudanese Armed Forces control.
Excellencies,
The conflict in Sudan continues to have immense repercussions on the country and its people who continue to face unimaginable suffering. The humanitarian and protection needs are rising by the day with no signs of a reprieve. My humanitarian colleague Ms. Edem Wosornu will brief you in detail on the mounting humanitarian needs and response efforts.
The indiscriminate and sometimes targeted attacks on civilians and civilian objects and infrastructure continue, particularly in Khartoum, Darfur, and North Kordofan, as the parties continue to disregard calls to protect civilians and uphold their international human rights and humanitarian law obligations.
Sexual violence continues to be perpetrated on a large scale, while children continue to be killed or victimized or are at risk of being recruited to fight.
The systematic abductions and killings of human rights defenders in Darfur and Khartoum are on the rise. The parties to the conflict must take concrete actions to end and investigate these violations, and support must be provided to strengthen human rights defenders’ networks and better protect human rights defenders.
UNITAMS and the wider UN has on several occasions denounced specific egregious violations such as ethnically-motivated attacks in West Darfur, systematic looting and rape, or aerial bombardments, and has named those responsible.
Hostilities in the country must come to an end and perpetrators should be held accountable for crimes committed, including sexual violence.
Excellencies,
We welcome the ongoing efforts by the African Union and IGAD to end the conflict in Sudan. UNITAMS remains committed to support these efforts including through the AU-led Expanded Mechanism and its Core Group – which the UN is a part of. We also welcome the continued efforts of the US and Saudi Arabia to facilitate negotiations between the conflicting parties in Jeddah, as well as the initiative of Sudan's neighboring countries to help resolve the conflict. The common thread among these initiatives is the call for a permanent cessation of hostilities, facilitation of humanitarian access, and engagement with civilian stakeholders in an inclusive political process.
Coordination between the existing regional and international mechanisms and fora remains essential to maximize the collective leverage of regional and international actors and enhance the effectiveness of mediation efforts. The United Nations is supporting a joined-up approach towards facilitating a comprehensive solution and will continue to work closely with our partners – particularly the African Union and IGAD in this regard, in coordination with others.
We must also highlight that a broad range of civilians remain committed to ending the war and a resumption of a transition leading to a democratic state. Civilians, tribal leaders and others are coming under increasing pressure to take sides in the war, and we continue to urge against this. Such pressure will only lead to a civil war with ethnic and regional repercussions for decades to come. In fact, UNITAMS is supporting efforts by local leaders to prevent or de-escalate conflicts particularly in Darfur.
UNITAMS also welcomes the ongoing efforts by civilian leaders to consolidate various civilian initiatives under one umbrella to unify anti-war forces in one broad front and prepare for an inclusive political process. It is important to include civil society, women’s rights groups, youth, trade professions, and resistance committees whose voices and engagement are particularly significant in any efforts to end the conflict in Sudan. UNITAMS continues its outreach with these initiatives and encouraging broad-based inclusivity.
Let me also highlight the important role Sudanese women are playing by leading several anti-war initiatives that call for the immediate cessation of violence, accountability for human rights violations including sexual violence, and for women’s participation in ceasefire negotiations and any future political process. Their voice must be heard.
Excellencies,
Let me close by reiterating that there needs to be a negotiated solution to end this war as soon as possible. There is no other alternative. Calls by some to continue the war in order to achieve a military victory will only contribute to destroying the country. The longer this war continues, the greater the risk of fragmentation, and foreign interference and erosion of sovereignty, and the loss of Sudan’s future, particularly its youth. Now is the time to end this senseless war and return to negotiations. UNITAMS, along with its partners, will continue to engage with both sides towards this goal and we count on the united support of this Council.
Thank you, Madame President.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for countries to recommit to eliminating nuclear weapons in his message to mark the 78th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the Japanese city of Nagasaki, observed on Wednesday.
Ongoing mediation efforts aimed at resolving the conflict in Sudan are critical, a senior UN official told the Security Council on Wednesday, warning against the risk of prolonged ethnic conflict.
A deal has been reached with the Government of Syria to reopen the main border crossing from Türkiye to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Persistent violence in Haiti remains a significant concern for the safety and welfare of its most vulnerable citizens, especially women and children, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday, citing reports of an “alarming spike” in kidnapping and other crimes.
Attacks against Ukrainian port infrastructure are not isolated and with Russia’s termination of the Black Sea Initiative, are impacting global food prices and affecting the most vulnerable people, a UN spokesperson said on Monday.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has underlined his support for ongoing mediation efforts by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in the wake of the 26 July attempted coup in Niger, his Office said on Monday.
|
|
As United Nations-led talks on nuclear disarmament continued in Geneva, New York and Vienna, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Sunday that “the drums of nuclear war are beating once again”.
Two senior UN humanitarian officials have called for more funding and less bureaucratic impediments to support civilians affected by the war in Sudan, including roughly 14 million children.
A new study by the Secretariat of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, highlights risks of statelessness for refugees who have spent more than 20 years outside their country of origin, and especially for their descendants born in exile.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has issued a grave warning regarding the deepening food crisis in Sudan, as the country grapples with conflict and economic decline.
The threat of famine, with people slowly starving to death, must be considered a red line for international peace and security, the UN Famine Prevention and Response Coordinator said on Thursday, warning that warring groups deliberately use hunger as a tactic of war.
Thirteen people have been killed and more than 60 injured in four days of deadly violence at the largest Palestine refugee camp in Lebanon, a senior UN official in the country said on Thursday.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres congratulated the Government of Colombia and the National Liberation Army (ELN) on the start of their bilateral ceasefire which entered into force on Thursday, his spokesperson said in a statement.
The Security Council on Wednesday unanimously voted to expand the mandate of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia to monitor a ceasefire between the Government and the largest remaining rebel group in the country.
Action is needed now to pave the way for timely and credible elections in South Sudan next December, the UN Special Representative for the country told journalists in the capital, Juba, on Wednesday.
Conflict in Sudan has forced nearly four million people to flee their homes in a little over 100 days, the UN migration agency, IOM, has warned.
The Security Council on Wednesday unanimously voted to expand the mandate of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia to monitor a ceasefire between the Government and the largest remaining rebel group in the country.
The security situation in wider West Africa could worsen unless the political crisis in Niger is resolved, the top UN official for the region said on Tuesday, underlining the need for peace.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned the deadly suicide bombing at a political rally in northwest Pakistan on Sunday.
The ongoing attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine are resulting in a surge in humanitarian needs, the top UN humanitarian official for the country said on Monday, urging increased funding to ensure assistance for those in need.
More than two days of armed violence at the Ein El Hilweh Palestine Refugee camp in southern Lebanon continues to impact civilians, including children, a senior UN official in the country said on Monday.
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for West Africa has underlined the UN’s condemnation of the attempted coup in Niger, the global body said on Monday.
In a press statement published on Friday, the Security Council members called for the immediate and unconditional release of Niger’s democratically-elected President, Mohammed Bazoum, and underscored the need to protect him, his family and members of his Government.
