FN advarer om, at en ny humanitær katastrofe kan være under opsejling i delstaten Syd Kordofan i Sudan. Her sidder op imod 200.000 mennesker fanget mellem Sydsudans hær og regeringsstyrker fra det nordlige Sudan.
De seneste 6 uger er konvojer med nødhjælp nægtet adgang til området, der er blevet den nye kampzone mellem Syd- og det nordlige Sudan, efter at Sydsudan fik sin uafhængighed 9. juli i år.
“The crisis in South Kordofan has reached a critical point,” Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos said in a statement on the state where the UN has already said crimes against humanity and war crimes may have been perpetrated in fighting between Government forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army North (SPLA-N).
“Essential supplies have been completely depleted in many parts of South Kordofan, leaving many people in a life-threatening situation without any prospect of relief,” she added, voicing alarm that Government authorities last week cancelled an essential humanitarian assessment mission to the region after denying permission to international agencies to replenish stocks and deploy personnel for the past six weeks.
“The Government of Sudan and the SPLM-N must lift restrictions on humanitarian organizations so they can provide timely and effective assistance to people in need,” she concluded. “Unless aid is delivered in sufficient quantities now, the consequences will be severe.”