The National Mechanism for Lifting the Siege on El-Fasher, in cooperation with the League of Nations Organization, staged a protest on Monday outside the UN headquarters in Port Sudan to denounce what it described as “UN silence” over atrocities committed against civilians in El-Fasher by the rebel militia.
The committee submitted a memorandum to the United Nations, delivered to the Assistant Secretary-General, calling for immediate action to break the siege on the city and save civilian lives.
Abdelnabi Dheifa, head of the legal department, handed over the memorandum demanding the lifting of the blockade on El-Fasher and Kadugli, describing the situation as a violation of international humanitarian law. He urged the UN to act swiftly, end the siege, and hold the rebel militia accountable for abuses against the Sudanese people.
Speaking after receiving the memorandum, UN Assistant Secretary-General in Sudan, Denise Brown, said she had arrived in Sudan within days of her nomination as Special Representative of Secretary-General António Guterres. She affirmed that Sudan is a key UN partner, noting that Guterres places Sudan among his top priorities. She confirmed that the UN is actively working to gain access to El-Fasher and Dilling, acknowledging the suffering of the population there.
Darfur’s Sultan Salah al-Din al-Fadl urged the UN to act quickly to save lives and expose the militia’s violations, describing the memorandum as a response to international silence in the face of atrocities committed against civilians in El-Fasher and Kadugli. “Why this suspicious silence?” he asked, demanding international justice for repeated abuses.
King Yaqoub Adam stressed that the militia had committed “serious violations against civilians, including siege and starvation,” and called for urgent international intervention.
Meanwhile, Shual Moin Bol, head of the Supreme Council for Dinka Abyei Affairs, said the memorandum delivered to the UN demonstrates Sudanese resolve and rejection of global complacency toward the crisis with the rebel Rapid Support Forces and their foreign backers. “The Sudanese people have dignity, and we have the right to live in peace and with honor as a recognized member of the international community,” he said.
