By Daphne Psaledakis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized the importance of achieving a humanitarian ceasefire in Sudan in a call with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed on Friday, just days after Washington’s top diplomat said action was needed to cut off the flow of weapons to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary RSF, which began in April 2023, has created what the U.N. has called the world’s largest humanitarian crisis at a time when global aid budgets are shrinking.
Some 12.5 million Sudanese were displaced within and outside the country as of mid-October, with an additional 140,000 since fleeing RSF attacks on al-Fashir and towns in the Kordofan region.
UAE REJECTS CLAIMS IT SUPPORTS RSF
Sudan’s army has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the RSF with weapons, a claim which U.N. experts and U.S. lawmakers have found credible. The UAE ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Jamal Al Musharakh, on Thursday rejected claims that it provides support in any form to either of the warring parties.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Rubio said Washington was doing everything it could to end the fighting and apply pressure to the parties involved.
“Something needs to be done to cut off the weapons and the support that the RSF is getting as they continue with their advances,” Rubio said.
Asked about the UAE’s role in the conflict, Rubio held back from naming it directly but said: “We know who the parties are that are involved … that’s why they’re part of the Quad, along with other countries involved. I can just tell you at the highest levels of our government that case is being made and that pressure is being applied to the relevant parties.”
“This needs to stop.”
He did not rule out designating the RSF a terrorist organization, saying the U.S. would take such a move if it would help end the fighting.
The fall of al-Fashir to the RSF on October 26 cemented its control of the Darfur region in the more than 2-1/2-year civil war with the Sudanese army.
Tens of thousands of people who have fled al-Fashir are unaccounted for, the U.N. refugee agency said on Friday, raising concerns for their safety after reports of rape, killings and other abuses from escapees.
(Reporting by Daphne PsaledakisEditing by Rod Nickel)
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