UN calls for a halt to arms deliveries to warring parties in Sudan

The UN’s political chief does not name the countries that supply weapons to the army and paramilitary forces, saying this is ‘unconscionable’.

The United Nations has said that continued arms supplies to Sudan’s warring military and paramilitary forces “enable the carnage” and must stop, with civilians bearing the brunt of the conflict.

Both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are escalating their military operations and recruiting new fighters, fueled by “significant” external support and a steady flow of weapons, said Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General for political and peacebuilding issues.

“To put it bluntly, certain alleged allies of the parties are enabling the carnage in Sudan,” she told the UN Security Council late on Tuesday, without naming the countries or parties sending weapons.

“This is unconscionable. It is illegal and it must end.”

Sudan plunged into civil war on April 15, 2023 as a result of a power struggle between the RSF led by Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo and SAF chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

The UN says the war has killed more than 24,000 people and created a humanitarian crisis that has displaced 11 million people. Of these, nearly three million people have fled to neighboring countries, in the world’s worst displacement crisis.

Both sides, especially the RSF, have been accused of war crimes and massacres, which they deny. The paramilitary group, which faces many accusations of ethnic cleansing in areas including West Darfur, claims that rogue states are behind the attacks.

DiCarlo said it is long past time for the rival warring parties to come to the negotiating table, but added that they appear confident they can win on the battlefield, something driven by outside support.

The SAF and the RSF both think they can win the war #Sudanescalating operations, recruiting new fighters and intensifying attacks.
Some of their external backers, who provide weapons and other support, enable the slaughter. This has to stop.

— Rosemary A. DiCarlo (@DicarloRosemary) November 13, 2024

The Sudanese government has accused the United Arab Emirates of arming the RSF. The Gulf state has denied the allegations. The RSF has also reportedly received armed support from Russia’s Wagner mercenary group.

UN experts said in a report earlier this year that the RSF has received support from Arab-allied communities, with military supply lines running through neighboring Chad, Libya and South Sudan.

Al-Burhan, the army chief who led a 2021 military takeover of Sudan, is a close ally of neighboring Egypt and its president, former army chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi. Sudanese Foreign Minister Hussein Awad Ali held talks in Tehran in February, leading to speculation that Iran may be preparing to send drones to government forces. Iran has not reported any arms deliveries to Sudan.

This comes as the UN Security Council discusses a resolution proposed by the United Kingdom demanding warring parties in Sudan to immediately cease hostilities and calling on them to allow unhindered deliveries of humanitarian aid as more than half of the population of 50 million people faces serious food shortages.

As the three-month approval by Sudanese authorities for the UN and aid groups to use the Adre border with Chad to deliver goods to Darfur expires in mid-November, the draft also calls for keeping the border crossing open.