Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos: Statement on Sudan (17 February 2012)

(New York, 17 February 2012) I am deeply concerned by the continued fighting in Sudan’s South Kordofan and Blue Nile States, which has already displaced hundreds of thousands of people and continues to create huge suffering and loss of life among civilians.

I welcome the recent statement by members of the United Nations Security Council calling on the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) to grant unhindered and immediate access for humanitarian personnel to assist people affected by the conflict, and calling on both sides to return to talks and to agree to an immediate cessation of hostilities.

The humanitarian situation is deteriorating rapidly and action is urgently needed to meet the needs of people caught up in the conflict. I call on the Government of Sudan and the SPLM-N to promptly and positively respond to the joint proposal of the African Union, the League of Arab States and the United Nations for access so that we can provide and deliver humanitarian assistance to people in South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

What is needed above all else is for the fighting to stop and for the two sides to commit to resolving the current dispute through peaceful means.