Global Courant
The UN says its emergency aid program, launched after war broke out on April 15, has received less than 16 percent of the required $2.57 billion.
The United Nations is holding a rally to raise billions of dollars for the dire humanitarian crisis in Sudan, with Germany and Qatar among the first countries to pledge tens of millions of dollars.
Representatives from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the African Union, Germany, Qatar and the European Union met in Geneva on Monday to discuss aid to Sudan.
“The magnitude and speed with which Sudan is sliding into death and destruction is unprecedented,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the conference.
“Without strong international support, Sudan could quickly become a place of lawlessness, radiating insecurity throughout the region. I appeal to all of you today to provide funds to provide life-saving humanitarian aid and support to people living in the most difficult and dangerous conditions.”
The UN says its emergency aid program, launched after the outbreak of war on April 15, has received less than 16 percent of the required $2.57 billion.
According to the UN, approximately 24.7 million people — more than half of Sudan’s population — are in need of humanitarian assistance. An estimated 2.2 million people have fled their homes to safer areas elsewhere in Sudan or have crossed into neighboring countries.
‘Humanitarian disaster’
Germany has pledged 200 million euros ($218 million) in humanitarian aid to Sudan and the region until 2024, Foreign Ministry Secretary Katja Keul announced.
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said the Gulf state is pledging $50 million.
“There is no military solution to this conflict, only a peaceful solution. We respectfully call on the parties to immediately cease hostilities, bring to the fore the aspirations of the Sudanese people and address the root causes of the conflict,” Sheikh Mohammed told the meeting.
The United States has pledged an additional $171 million in funding, said Samantha Power, administrator of the US Agency for International Development. The UN said it is allocating an additional $22 million to meet priority needs.
Sudan has been rocked by fighting as the regular army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces battle for control of the country.
The Sudanese health ministry says more than 3,000 people have died in the conflict, which has decimated the country’s fragile infrastructure and sparked communal violence in the western region of Darfur.
Last week, Martin Griffiths, the UN’s top humanitarian official, described the situation in West Darfur as a “humanitarian disaster”.
The worst violence
The conflict has turned the capital, Khartoum, and other urban areas into battlefields. The paramilitary force, commanded by General Mohammed “Hemedti” Hamdan Dagalo, has occupied people’s homes and other civilian properties, according to residents and activists.
The army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has repeatedly launched airstrikes in densely populated civilian areas.
West Darfur has seen the worst violence, with tens of thousands of residents fleeing to neighboring Chad.
“The situation in Darfur and Khartoum is catastrophic. There is fighting with people being attacked at home and on the street,” Guterres said.
The Rapid Support Forces and affiliated Arab militias have repeatedly attacked the province’s capital, el-Geneina, targeting the non-Arab Masalit community, human rights groups said.
The former governor of the province, Khamis Abdalla Abkar, a Masalit, was kidnapped and killed last week after he appeared in a television interview accusing Arab militias and the paramilitary force of attacking el-Geneina. The Rapid Support Forces denied responsibility.
On Sunday morning, the country’s warring troops began a three-day ceasefire, the ninth ceasefire since the conflict began. Most ceasefires have failed.
