The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has called for an immediate cessation of hostilities in the Northern Darfur region of Sudan as fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Force soldiers rages on.
A statement issued by IGAD’s Executive Secretary Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu Wednesday noted that recent assaults on critical healthcare infrastructure in the town of El Fasher had disrupted the delivery of vital medical supplies and hindered the treatment of injured and displaced women and children.
An estimated 800,000 people live around El Fasher, the only town in Northern Darfur that reportedly remains under the control of the Sudanese Armed Forces.
Dr Workneh urged “all parties involved to exercise restraint in accordance with established international norms” while further underscoring “the urgent need for unimpeded access for humanitarian aid delivery to alleviate the suffering of affected populations”.
He called upon the IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government to compel the warring parties to lay down their arms and embark on negotiations to broker a peaceful resolution to the conflict which has now been ongoing for over a year.
Kenya has previously raised concern over the conflict in Sudan terming it as “an existential threat to regional peace” with Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi calling on IGAD and the African Union to take the lead in international processes seeking to address the situation.
