ADDIS ABABA: African Union officials on Tuesday branded Sudan’s civil war the “worst humanitarian crisis in the world” and warned it was leaving hundreds of thousands of children malnourished.
The Sudanese army has been at war since April 2023 with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in a conflict that has displaced around 12 million people, according to the AU and the International Rescue Committee.
It “has hampered access to humanitarian relief, led to shortage of food and aggravated hunger,” Mohamed Ibn Chambas, chairman of an AU panel on Sudan, said Tuesday on X.
“Children and women are continually abused, and the elderly and sick lack medical assistance,” he added.
“This is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.”
A senior AU official for child welfare, Wilson Almeida Adao, said in a separate X post that hospital admissions for malnutrition rose by 44 percent in 2024, with over 431,000 children receiving treatment.
“We witness reports of grave violations, including attacks on schools and hospitals, forced recruitment of child soldiers, and the denial of humanitarian access,” he said.
The Sudanese army controls the east and north of the country while the RSF holds most of the stricken Darfur region, where the United Nations on Monday accused it of blocking aid.
For the AU, “only inter-Sudanese political dialogue, not the military option, can end this war,” said Chambas.
African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’
https://arab.news/5dr3b
African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’
- The Sudanese army has been at war since April 2023 with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces
- The Sudanese army controls the east and north of the country while RSF holds most of Darfur region
US Senate votes to end 'Caesar' sanctions against Syria
- Foreign minister Asaad Al-Shaibani says the move will 'open new horizons for cooperation' with the world
- Repeal of the sanctions is contained within sweeping defense bill, which sets out a record $901bn in annual military spending
LONDON: The ending of tough US sanctions against Syria moved a step closer on Wednesday when the US Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of a sweeping defense bill.The National Defense Authorization Act, which sets out a record $901 billion in annual military spending, included measures to repeal the “Caesar Act” financial restrictions placed on Damascus.
The sanctions were imposed in 2020 against former President Bashar Assad’s regime over the human-rights abuses carried out during the civil war.
Assad was driven from power a year ago and the new government has worked to end Syria’s international isolation and has won support from President Donald Trump.
Removing US restrictions on trade and investment with the country is seen as a crucial step in helping it recover from the devastating 13-year conflict.
The legislation will now pass to the president who the White House has said will sign it into law.
Syria’s foreign minister, Asaad Al-Shaibani, welcomed the progress of the bill.
“We express our sincere gratitude to the US Senate for its support of the Syrian people through its vote to repeal the Caesar Act,” he wrote on X.“We consider this step a positive development that opens new horizons for cooperation and partnership between our country and the world.”
