UN chief supports Sudanese premier’s peace initiative, calls for immediate ceasefire

ISTANBUL

The UN on Friday expressed support for a peace initiative presented by Sudan's Prime Minister Kamil Idris during a Security Council meeting, and called for an immediate end to hostilities.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres continues to emphasize that pursuing lasting and inclusive peace is essential, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

"The United Nations supports a resolution that puts an end to the ongoing conflict and preserves the unity and territorial integrity of Sudan," Dujarric said.

Guterres urges the warring parties to agree on an immediate cessation of hostilities and achieve a lasting ceasefire, the spokesman added.

“The Secretary-General encourages all Sudanese actors to prioritize compromise and the articulation of a shared vision for a civilian-led transition," Dujarric said.

Guterres' personal envoy for Sudan Ramtane Lamamra "remains ready to advance consultations with both parties on achieving an inclusive and sustainable resolution to the conflict," he added.

Idris presented a peace initiative to the Security Council on Monday calling for an immediate ceasefire monitored by the UN, African Union, and League of Arab States. It also called for the withdrawal of paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from occupied areas to supervised camps.

Al-Basha Tibiq, adviser to RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, said the RSF has rejected Idris's plan.

Sudan's crisis has worsened since the war between the Sudanese army and RSF erupted in April 2023, killing tens of thousands and displacing about 13 million people.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west, except for some northern parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army, meanwhile, holds most areas of the remaining 13 states in the south, north, east, and center, including the capital Khartoum.