19 November 2025
A coalition of Arab and international organizations has issued an urgent statement calling for immediate international action to halt the unprecedented humanitarian deterioration in Sudan. Signed by 81 organizations and institutions, the statement highlights the escalating hunger crisis and the expansion of armed conflict since April 2023. This appeal comes amid UN warnings of a current humanitarian catastrophe, with field reports documenting the dire conditions in besieged areas and the catastrophic rise in food insecurity.
The statement outlines five key demands addressed to the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, the League of Arab States, the Arab Parliament, and the African Parliament. These include calls for comprehensive security and political measures to ensure lasting peace throughout Sudan; the establishment of a neutral international mechanism to monitor aid delivery and prevent the politicization or militarization of food; ensuring safe humanitarian corridors under UN supervision; halting foreign intervention and respecting Sudan’s sovereignty, while holding external actors accountable for fueling the conflict; and an immediate international investigation and accountability for those committing gross violations against civilians. It also urges increased urgent international funding to support relief operations and nutrition programs, alongside strong and sustainable international initiatives to prevent Sudan’s economic and humanitarian collapse, with a focus on revitalizing the agricultural sector to restore its vital role in food security and empowering local communities.
The statement emphasizes that fulfilling these demands is the minimum necessary to prevent the complete collapse of the humanitarian situation and ensure the protection of civilians.
The signatories stress that the ongoing armed conflict, the destruction of agricultural infrastructure, the obstruction of humanitarian aid, and the egregious violations against civilians place the international community under urgent responsibility to act. The statement seeks to mobilise regional and international efforts to end the war, protect civilians, secure humanitarian corridors, ensure accountability for perpetrators of crimes, and support the agricultural sector in regaining its crucial role in ensuring food security.
Full Statement:
Urgent Call for Immediate International Action in Sudan
Sudan is experiencing one of the worst man-made humanitarian crises in its modern history since the outbreak of armed conflict in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia who are backed by foreign powers seeking to prolong the war to gain economic and strategic advantages. These foreign powers seek to secure control over Sudan’s natural resources and its vital location in the Horn of Africa.
The food situation in Sudan has reached unprecedented catastrophic levels, driven by several interrelated factors — the most significant being the destruction of agricultural infrastructure and farms, forced displacement and the consequent abandonment of farmland. Additionally, food supply chains, including transport routes, markets, and internal and external trade, have been severely disrupted. The obstruction of humanitarian aid to besieged and heavily affected areas has created famine. This is compounded by soaring food prices and a broad economic collapse that has left the population with extremely weak purchasing power.
According to data from the World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), more than 24.6 million people — over half of Sudan’s population — are facing acute food insecurity, while over 600,000 people are experiencing catastrophic hunger levels (IPC Phase 5). Conditions are deteriorating rapidly in besieged areas, such as El Fasher and Greater Darfur, where aid routes have been cut off for more than 500 days. Field reports indicate that civilians have been forced to consume animal feed and wild plants to survive.
In February 2025, the United Nations warned of the risk of “mass death from famine,” affirming that the use of starvation as a weapon of war constitutes a war crime under international law. The WFP also reported that more than 40% of the affected areas are inaccessible due to security restrictions and blockades.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia have committed horrific crimes against civilians —particularly women and girls — including deliberate killings, rape, abduction, and torture, in addition to destroying homes and vital infrastructure. These violations constitute crimes against humanity under international law and form part of a systematic campaign of terror aimed at intimidating the civilian population and seizing control of resources and territories.
The undersigned parties to this statement call on the international community — including the United Nations and other international organizations, regional intergovernmental organizations including the African Union, the League of Arab States, the European Union, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, all member states, civil society organizations and complicit and enabling corporations — to take urgent, coordinated action to end the worsening crisis in Sudan through the following measures:
- Take all necessary security and political measures, as well as agreements, to achieve lasting peace throughout Sudan.
- The establishment of a neutral international mechanism to monitor humanitarian access, prevent the politicization and weaponization of food aid, and ensure safe humanitarian corridors under UN supervision.
- An end to foreign interference and respect for Sudan’s sovereignty, as well as extra-territorial obligations to ensure accountability for external actors fueling the conflict.
- Immediate investigation and international prosecution of those responsible for grave abuses committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia against civilians — men, women, and children — including killings, rape, abduction, torture, and starvation, ensuring that perpetrators and their enablers are brought to justice under international law.
- Increased emergency international funding to support relief operations and nutrition programs for children and pregnant women, alongside strong, sustainable international initiatives to rescue Sudan from economic and humanitarian collapse. This must include support for initiatives that revitalize the agricultural sector to restore full productivity, ensuring long-term food security and enabling local communities to recover and achieve self-reliance.
The world’s silence in the face of the tragedy in Sudan amounts to complicity in war crimes and starvation. Every day of delay means more lives lost, further undermining Sudan’s stability and regional security. The international community is now being called upon — more than ever before — to take a firm stand to protect civilians and guarantee unhindered humanitarian access.