BRUSSELS 

The EU on Tuesday warned that Sudan is facing a "catastrophic" humanitarian crisis, urging all parties to grant unhindered humanitarian access and resume negotiations for an immediate ceasefire.

Addressing the European Parliament's plenary session in Strasbourg, the EU commissioner for equality and acting commissioner for crisis management, Hadja Lahbib, said hunger, malnutrition, and disease are rapidly spreading across the country, while international humanitarian law is being violated.

Lahbib described the situation in Darfur and Kordofan as "particularly shocking," recalling last month’s "horrific attacks" against civilians by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) during their capture of El-Fasher and Bara.

"Thousands of civilians in El-Fasher have been killed on ethnic grounds, in house-to-house raids, mass detentions. People (are) unable to leave the city," she said.

The commissioner noted that the RSF continues to block humanitarian assistance, further shrinking the humanitarian space in Sudan.

Since the conflict erupted in April 2023, more than 120 aid workers have been killed, making Sudan "one of the deadliest places in the world" for humanitarian staff.

Lahbib stressed that 21 million people face acute food insecurity, according to the latest assessment by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, and warned that bureaucratic hurdles continue to obstruct aid operations.

She recalled that EU foreign ministers last week adopted sanctions against the RSF's second-in-command, Abdelrahim Dagalo, for human rights violations and reiterated the bloc’s call for full accountability for atrocities committed in the country.

Lahbib also stressed the need for diplomatic engagement with regional actors to apply pressure on the warring sides.

"Considering the work of Kuwait, UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the US, we have to take into account all interests and regional actors, including Türkiye," she noted.

"Sudan has become a living nightmare for its people and a humanitarian catastrophe," she said, adding that supporting humanitarian efforts in the country remains a priority for the European Commission.

Separately​​​​​​​, the EU and the African Union condemned the atrocities committed by the RSF following their capture of the city of El-Fasher, and urged an immediate end to the conflict in Sudan.

Since April 2023, the Sudanese army and the RSF have been locked in a war that regional and international mediations have failed to end. The conflict has killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.