Nearly 3 mln people in Sudan need humanitarian aid due to war: official

PORT SUDAN, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese government on Wednesday said that 28.9 million people in Sudan need humanitarian assistance due to the ongoing civil war.

In October, the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance rose to 28.9 million, an increase of 13.1 million after the outbreak of the war last April, said Salwa Adam Benya, Sudan's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner, when addressing a conference for humanitarian response held in Port Sudan, the capital city of the eastern Red Sea State.

Of the 28.9 million, 16.9 million are in need of life-saving humanitarian assistance, requiring about 840,000 metric tons of assistance in the next two months, Benya said.

Ibrahim Jabir of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council called on the international community to commit to its pledges to provide the necessary support to the Sudanese people.

He reiterated the Sudanese government's commitment to facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to those affected by the conflict, saying the government has opened seven crossings, "including the Adre crossing, which we know the militia (the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces) has misused."

Earlier on Wednesday, the Sudanese government decided to extend the opening of the Adre border crossing with Chad for another three months to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The Sudanese government closed the Adre land border crossing in February, accusing the RSF of using it to transport weapons.

Sudan has been gripped by a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary forces since mid-April 2023. ■