The African Union (AU) Commission has condemned the violence in Sudan and called for an immediate and unconditional humanitarian ceasefire.
Development Diaries reports that after a week of fighting between two factions of the country’s military leadership, at least 400 people have been killed.
The BBC, Friday, reported about two women who have lost several family members, including two children.
In a communique released at the end of a special ministerial meeting, the AU demanded that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) establish humanitarian corridors and allow for unhindered humanitarian access and evacuation of injured civilians.
‘Recognising that the deliberate targeting of civilians constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law and human rights law, [participants] therefore call on the SAF and RSF to fulfill their international legal obligations’, the communique read in part.
It also demanded that they urgently address the rehabilitation of critical basic infrastructure, in particular, water and electricity utilities, and ensure access by the civilian population to these services.
Meanwhile, the United Nations has warned that between 10,000 and 20,000 people – mostly women and children – have fled Sudan, to seek safety in neighbouring Chad.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Wednesday, reiterated its call for humanitarian organisations to be granted access to areas affected by the ongoing violence in Sudan.
According to ICRC, hospitals in the capital, Khartoum, are running dangerously low on medical supplies, while water and energy infrastructure damages have left medical facilities without power and clean water.
The ICRC said it had received many distressed calls from people and organisations seeking evacuation and from people trapped in their homes or public places without food and water.
Tensions escalated after the RSF started deploying members around the country and in Khartoum without the expressed permission of the army.
Source: AU
Photo source: Reuters
