UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for accountability following a “despicable” terrorist attack in Mali this week, his Spokesperson said on Thursday.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for accountability following a “despicable” terrorist attack in Mali this week, his Spokesperson said on Thursday.
Mr. President, Distinguished Members of the Security Council,
Thank you for convening today’s meeting on the situation in the Sudan, following alarming reports of yet another escalation of fighting in El Fasher. This recent intensification is occurring as devasting clashes continue in many other parts of Sudan, including around Greater Khartoum and Sennar.
Even while millions of lives are at risk across Sudan, hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in El Fasher are now at risk of the consequences of mass violence as fighting engulfs the city. It has further exposed the extremely vulnerable population, including internally displaced persons living in large camps near El Fasher. This violence has also affected healthcare facilities.
Open sources report that a fresh round of large-scale fighting broke out in El Fasher on 12 September. The Rapid Support Forces launched a coordinated attack on the city from multiple directions. The Sudanese Armed Forces and affiliated armed movements reportedly repelled the attack in the hours and days that followed.
Mr. President,
The current wave of fighting marks the latest chapter of violence in El Fasher and occurs amidst a months-long siege and attack on the city at the hands of the Rapid Support Forces. This has caused appalling levels of suffering for the civilian population, including famine conditions in Zamzam camp south of El Fasher, among other locations.
For months, international partners have engaged individually and collectively in trying to secure a de-escalation of the situation and prevent more suffering in El Fasher. The Council has adopted resolution 2736 (2024) calling on the Rapid Support Forces to halt the siege of El Fasher and for an immediate end to the fighting. Yet, prevention efforts to prevent a further military escalation in El Fasher have failed. Hundreds of thousands of civilians remain trapped in the city are at risk of mass violence.
The stakes could not be higher. The risk of the escalation of fighting fueling a dangerous ethnic dimension of this conflict is well known. So are the destabilizing effects for the entire region.
Mr. President,
The Secretary-General has consistently called on the parties to de-escalate the situation in El Fasher and spare civilians from further suffering. He has warned of the grave and unpredictable ramifications of such an escalation.
The Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Sudan, Mr. Ramtane Lamamra, has directly engaged the belligerents, including during the proximity talks in Geneva in July and supported the mediation efforts of the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland in August. Mr. Lamamra most recently engaged the Sudanese authorities during a visit to Port Sudan at the end of August, alongside the Deputy Secretary-General.
The impetus underpinning the UN’s collective efforts during this recent “season of diplomacy” has been to amplify the criticality of the protection of civilians, in El Fasher and across the entirety of Sudan.
The protection of civilians is the responsibility of the Government of the Sudan, first and foremost. However, it is incumbent upon all warring parties in the Sudan to respect and uphold their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law.
The Rapid Support Forces submitted a set of unilateral commitments to the Secretary-General on how to strengthen the protection of civilians pursuant to the conclusion of the proximity talks in Geneva in July, under the auspices of Personal Envoy Lamamra. The Rapid Support Forces must live up to their own commitments and take steps to implement them without delay.
Mr. President,
An agreement on a ceasefire would be the single-most effective way to strengthen civilian protection. This is true for El Fasher and all of the Sudan.
Progress in agreeing on a nationwide ceasefire and securing progress on other commitments such as those in the Jeddah Declaration has, however, proven difficult to achieve.
Yet it is critical that the conflict parties take immediate action toward implementation of the Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan of 11 May 2023 in accordance with the respective Resolutions of this Council.
To that end, it is notable that the Aligned for Advancing Lifesaving and Peace in Sudan (ALPS) Group, which met in Geneva last month, presented the conflict parties a proposal for a compliance mechanism to resolve disputes, receive complaints, and address problems arising in relation to implementation of commitments around the protection of civilians under existing agreements, including the Jeddah Declaration, and international humanitarian and human rights law.
We urge the conflict parties to give serious consideration to this proposed modality.
Efforts have also been made to explore possibilities for local ceasefires, including by drawing on local actors. Prior to the deterioration of the situation in El Fasher, a local ceasefire protected the city’s population for close to a year. A return to such an arrangement in El Fasher and similar short-term solutions in other locations must continue to be pursued.
Besides calling on the parties to de-escalate the fighting in El Fasher, resolution 2736 (2024) also contained a request for the “Secretary-General, in consultation with the Sudanese authorities and regional stakeholders, to make further recommendations for the protection of civilians in Sudan.”
Work on these recommendations, informed by the outcomes of the proximity talks convened by Personal Envoy Lamamra and the secretariat’s wide-ranging consultations with key stakeholders led by the Secretariat, is ongoing and will be presented to the Security Council in October.
Mr. President,
We take note of the Council’s recent adoption of resolution 2750 (2024), further extending the sanctions regime first established by resolution 1591 (2005).
The conflict in Sudan is not occurring in a vacuum. The flames of armed violence continue to be fanned by inflows of weapons to Sudan. We call on all Member States to refrain from supplying arms to Sudan and to observe the arms embargo for Darfur, in keeping with relevant Council resolutions.
Mr. President,
As the violence escalates in El Fasher and continues to spread across the Sudan, the risk of atrocities multiply, including gross violence against women. Both the SAF and RSF, and their respective allied groups and militias, continue to show complete disregard for international human rights and humanitarian law.
Violations include summary executions, abductions and enforced disappearances, arbitrary and incommunicado detention of civilians by both parties, subjecting many to torture and other human rights violations. We are alarmed by the shrinking civic space as well as by the ethnically motivated attacks and hate speech, and the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war.
The prevailing impunity, and lack of effective accountability, are a major challenge in Sudan. Human rights violations must stop. Perpetrators must be held accountable for their crimes.
Mr. President,
Immediate action is needed to halt the fighting in El Fasher. I urge members of the Security Council to employ their collective leverage to help protect the population caught in the crossfire.
The upcoming General Assembly marks an additional opportunity for Member States and the United Nations alike to raise the profile of this escalating tragedy. Relevant external players must act responsibly and use their leverage over the warring parties to advance peace efforts.
Personal Envoy Lamamra will continue coordinating international mediation efforts in the Sudan to promote dialogue to end the war, while advancing incremental progress on key issues such as a cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and humanitarian access.
A dangerous new reality has now emerged in the wake of the El Fasher escalation with grave and unpredictable ramifications. It risks a widening and entrenchment of the armed conflict; an even deeper ethnic polarization of Sudanese society; and a further destabilization of the region.
The United Nations remains committed to working with all relevant stakeholders to help bring an end to the conflict, starting with an immediate cessation of hostilities.
I thank you.
A sharp escalation in fighting in Sudan’s El Fasher, along with ongoing clashes between rival military factions across the country, is heightening the risk of atrocities, including violence against women, and worsening the already dire humanitarian crisis, senior UN officials warned on Wednesday.
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UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for an end to the escalation in violence in the Middle East amid reports of a fresh wave of electronic device detonations in Lebanon which caused further deaths and injuries.
The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed by reports that a large number of communication devices exploded across Lebanon, as well as in Syria, on 17 and 18 September, killing at least eleven people, including children, and injuring thousands. The Secretary-General urges all concerned actors to exercise maximum restraint to avert any further escalation. The Secretary-General urges the parties to recommit to the full implementation of Security Council...
The General Assembly passed a resolution demanding an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestine within the next twelve months by an overwhelming margin on Wednesday. The vote came in the middle of its 10th emergency special session considering Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
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The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, has called for calm following attacks across the country on Tuesday which killed at least nine people, including children, and left thousands injured - many critically.
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Beirut, Lebanon
17 September 2024
The Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, deplores today’s attack across Lebanon which left thousands injured, many critically, and is confirmed to have killed at least nine, including children. In accordance with international humanitarian law, she reminds all concerned actors that civilians are not a target and must be protected at all times. Even one civilian casualty is one too many.
The...
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The UN and other bodies set up in the wake of World War Two, are struggling to cope effectively with today’s global threats and challenges. At a landmark event in New York this September, world leaders will consider far-reaching plans to shake up international institutions and bring about major reforms for a safer, fairer future for all.
Not enough progress is being made in getting desperately needed aid and commercial goods into Gaza, the UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for the Strip said in a briefing to the Security Council on Monday.
A relentless siege, deadly targeted attacks and chronic restrictions on lifesaving aid deliveries into the war-torn Gaza Strip by Israeli forces: that’s just some of what aid workers are grappling with as they try to provide the level of lifesaving assistance needed to stave off widespread famine and epidemics in the strip.
With conflict and violence at record levels, the UN Member States have called on Secretary-General António Guterres to come up with a template for a more peaceful, secure world. The “New Agenda for Peace” will be a key component of the Summit of the Future, a landmark event to be held at UN Headquarters this September.
The UN and other bodies set up in the wake of World War Two, are struggling to cope effectively with today’s global threats and challenges. At a landmark event in New York this September, world leaders will consider far-reaching plans to shake up international institutions and bring about major reforms for a safer, fairer future for all.
Overcrowded shelters in Gaza, a lack of running water and the constant threat of disease are making conditions worse by the day for people in the enclave, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, warned on Monday.
Left unchecked, artificial intelligence (AI) could destabilize democratic systems by spreading disinformation, fueling hate speech and distorting public opinion through deepfakes, the UN Secretary-General has warned.
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