UN Envoy Meets Officials in Cairo Amid Escalating Sudan Drone Strikes
The UN secretary-general’s personal envoy for Sudan, Pekka Haavisto, held talks in Cairo over the weekend with Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, as diplomats prepare for upcoming UN sessions in New York while violence continues to spread across Sudan.
Drone strikes and other attacks kept endangering civilians and forcing people from their homes across Darfur, Kordofan and Blue Nile State even as the diplomatic talks unfolded. Fahmy used his Sunday meeting with Haavisto to press for a comprehensive, Sudanese-led political process that includes all parts of Sudanese society, while reaffirming Arab League support for Sudan’s sovereignty and warning against outside interference. Abdelatty, meeting separately with Haavisto on Monday, emphasized the need to stabilize the country, end the fighting and reach a political settlement that preserves Sudan’s sovereignty and respects Sudanese ownership of any solution. Both sides issued a joint statement stressing the importance of respecting Sudan’s sovereignty, supporting de-escalation and easing the delivery of humanitarian aid.
UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said the violence remains severe. In Blue Nile State, drone strikes hit fuel stations and other infrastructure in the state capital on Sunday, with civilian casualties reported; nearly 100,000 people have been displaced by insecurity there between January and August, a 66 percent jump from the figure reported in late May. In North Darfur, strikes hit the town of Tina near the Chad border, while nearly 1,200 people were displaced from two villages in El-Fasher between September 10 and 13, and more than 1,200 others fled villages in Um Baru over the past week, most crossing into Chad. West Darfur also saw drone attacks Saturday, including on a fuel market, with casualties reported. In Kordofan, more than 7,000 people have recently arrived in Abassiya, while a camp in El-Obeid is now hosting around 9,000 families, straining already overcrowded sites.
Haq repeated the UN’s call for all parties to protect civilians and infrastructure and to allow safe, unhindered humanitarian access. Sudan has been mired in civil war since April 2023, when tensions between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the rival Rapid Support Forces erupted into fighting that has killed tens of thousands and fueled a severe hunger crisis. A report from May found nearly 19.5 million people, about 41 percent of Sudan’s population, facing acute food insecurity, prompting the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, World Food Programme and UNICEF to call for an immediate halt to hostilities and increased funding for food and health assistance.
Amani El-Taweel, a researcher at Al-Ahram Center, told Arab News the Cairo talks reflect ongoing diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis, though she noted the situation remains extremely complex given the broader escalation across the Middle East and new fronts complicating conditions in eastern Sudan. Ezzat Saad, director of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, said the only way out lies in unifying Sudanese institutions and securing a ceasefire, and that any resolution must come from within Sudan without outside interference, with Sudanese institutions themselves needing to show genuine commitment to preserving the country’s unity.
On Saturday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in India, where he described any threat to Sudan’s security, unity or sovereignty as a red line, according to Egypt’s presidency. Egypt has positioned itself as an active mediator in the conflict, having hosted a coordination meeting on Sudan peace efforts in January and launched the Sudan Neighboring Countries Initiative in July 2023, which called for a ceasefire, inclusive political talks and guaranteed humanitarian access.
Also Read:
Netanyahu Warns of Tough Response if Israel Comes Under Attack
Gold Prices Decline Ahead of Fed Meeting Amid Rate Hike Expectations
