UNITED NATIONS, May 1. /TASS/. In view of the worsening situation in Sudan, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, ordered to send to the northeastern African country his deputy Martin Griffiths, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
"In light of the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Sudan, Secretary General Antonio Guterres is sending UN Humanitarian Affairs chief Martin Griffiths to the region immediately," the statement reads.
"The scale and speed of what is unfolding is unprecedented in Sudan," Dujarric was quoted as saying by the statement. "We are extremely concerned by the immediate as well as long-term impact on all people in Sudan, and the broader region."
The situation in Sudan escalated amid disagreements between the army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who also heads the ruling Sovereignty Council, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), who is al-Burhan’s deputy in the council.
The main points of contention between the two military organizations pertain to the timeline and methods for unifying the armed forces of Sudan, as well as who should be appointed as commander-in-chief of the army: a career military officer, which is al-Burhan’s preferred option, or an elected civilian president, as Dagalo insists.
On April 15, armed clashes between the rival military factions erupted near a military base in Merowe and in the capital, Khartoum. According to the country’s health ministry, more than 600 people have been killed in the country since the conflict broke out.