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UK condemns escalating crises in Sudan, DRC

The UK has condemned the escalating violence in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), calling the crises “one of the biggest humanitarian catastrophes of our lifetimes.”

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File Source: Anadako

The UK has condemned the escalating violence in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), calling the crises “one of the biggest humanitarian catastrophes of our lifetimes.” In a statement to Parliament on Tuesday, Foreign Secretary David Lammy detailed the worsening conditions, urging global attention and immediate action.  

Lammy highlighted the devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has now raged for 21 months. The latest escalation saw RSF forces attack the last functional hospital in El-Fasher, Darfur, killing at least 70 patients and their companions, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 

The RSF also shelled the Zamzam camp for internally displaced people in western Sudan, while militias aligned with the SAF have reportedly carried out extrajudicial killings in Wad Madani. “These attacks show a callous disregard for international humanitarian law and innocent Sudanese civilians,” Lammy’s statement read.  

Having recently visited Adré on the Chad-Sudan border, Lammy shared harrowing testimonies from refugees, 88% of whom are women and children. “I met a woman who showed me her scars. She had been burned. She had been beaten. She had been raped,” he said.  

Turning to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, he described the worsening conflict in the east, where M23 rebels have advanced into Goma for the first time since 2012. The offensive has already claimed the lives of UN peacekeepers from South Africa, Malawi, and Uruguay, while hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee. The region remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for women and girls, with reports of children as young as nine being mutilated by machete-wielding militias.  

Lammy lamented the lack of international focus on the crises in Africa, contrasting it with conflicts in other regions. “There should be no hierarchy of conflicts,” he said, calling for greater global engagement. He urged a permanent ceasefire in Sudan, unrestricted humanitarian access, and a sustained UN presence. The UK has also updated its travel guidance, warning British nationals to avoid Rwanda’s Rubavu district near the conflict-ridden border with Goma.  

Despite the complexity of the crises, Lammy insisted that inaction was not an option. “Civilians in Sudan and eastern DRC must feel so powerless. Power seems gripped by those waging war around them,” he said, adding that the UK would “keep doing all in our power to get the world focused on these conflicts—and, somehow, to bring them to an end.”

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