UN warns 'intensified hostilities' ahead in Sudan

PORT SUDAN:

The United Nations warned on Friday of "intensified hostilities" ahead in Sudan, despite paramilitary forces endorsing a truce proposal from mediators after more than two years of war with the regular army.

"There is no sign of de-escalation," UN human rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.

"Developments on the ground indicate clear preparations for intensified hostilities, with everything that implies for its long-suffering people."

On Thursday, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said they had accepted a truce plan put forward by the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

However, the government, backed by the army, has yet to respond to the US-led mediators' proposal, and explosions rocked the army-controlled capital Khartoum on Friday. The conflict, which erupted in April 2023, has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced nearly 12 million and triggered a hunger crisis.

Less than two weeks ago, the RSF captured the city of El-Fasher, the army's last major stronghold in Darfur, giving it control of all five state capitals in the vast western region, in addition to parts of the south.

The army controls most of Sudan's north, east and centre. El-Fasher's fall was accompanied by reports of mass killings, sexual violence and looting, drawing international condemnation.

Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab said on Thursday that satellite imagery collected earlier this week showed the RSF had blocked a key civilian escape route from the city.

Doctors Without Borders warned Friday that the fate of hundreds of thousands who are still trapped in El-Fasher was unknown after satellite images from Yale's HRL showed suspected mass graves.

According to the United Nations, about 70,000 people have fled El-Fasher to nearby towns, including Tawila, while the city had previously housed some 260,000.