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We Cannot Work Under Barrel Of Gun – UN Cries Out As Sudan Boils The More

Published

2 years ago

July 16, 2023

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, says warring factions in Sudan should stop targeting aid workers and civilians.

“Humanitarians cannot work under the barrel of a gun,” Griffith said in a statement on Saturday, adding that the warring factions must respect international law as the conflict in the country reached three-month mark.

“For three months now, the people of Sudan have endured unspeakable suffering amid violence that is tearing their country apart.

“As the conflict enters its fourth month, the battle lines are hardening, making it ever more difficult to reach the millions of people who need urgent humanitarian assistance,” he said.

More than three million people have been displaced due to the conflict both within Sudan and across its borders.

The fighting, which broke out in mid-April has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 1,100 people and injured over 12,000, according to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

Health workers and facilities have also been attacked, severely limiting access for those in need.

With the onset of the rainy season, there is an increased risk of outbreaks of water- and vector-borne diseases, compounded by challenges in waste management and shortages of supplies.

Children are among the worst affected, with an estimated 13.6 million – roughly half the number remaining in Sudan – in urgent need of assistance.

Describing Sudan as “one of the world’s most difficult places for humanitarian workers to operate,” Griffiths emphasised the collaborative efforts of local organizations and international aid groups in delivering life-saving supplies.

However, he said the work couldn’t be carried out when relief workers themselves, are at risk.

“But we cannot work under the barrel of a gun. We cannot replenish stores of food, water and medicine if brazen looting of these stocks continues. We cannot deliver if our staff are prevented from reaching people in need.”

He underlined that ultimately, the suffering of Sudanese people will end only when the fighting stops, and called on the parties to the conflict to abide by the Declaration of Commitments they signed in Jeddah to protect civilians and respect international humanitarian law.

Drawing attention to the recent discovery of mass graves in West Darfur, Griffiths highlighted the fear of resurgence of ethnic killings in the region.

“Each day the fighting continues, the misery deepens for Sudanese civilians.

“We must all redouble our efforts to ensure that the conflict in Sudan does not spiral into a brutal and interminable civil war with grave consequences for the region.

“The people of Sudan cannot afford to wait,” the UN official said.

Headline

UK PM Says Latest Russia Strikes On Ukraine Shows Putin ‘Not Serious About Peace’

Published

5 hours ago

September 7, 2025

Editor

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned Russia’s barrage of air strikes against Ukraine on Sunday, saying they showed that Russian President Vladimir Putin “is not serious about peace”.

“I’m appalled by the latest brutal overnight assault on Kyiv and across Ukraine,” Starmer said in a statement. “These cowardly strikes show that Putin believes he can act with impunity. He is not serious about peace.”

Headline

Teenager Angry, Poisons Uncle’s Soup Because He Snores Too Much

Published

14 hours ago

September 7, 2025

Editor

A high school student in Japan has been arrested for allegedly poisoning his uncle’s soup in an attempt to kill him because he couldn’t stand his snoring, the country’s media reported.

The 18-year-old teenager from Ichibara, Japan’s Chiba prefecture, was arrested and charged with attempted murder after allegedly mincing leaves from a toxic oleander plant and pouring them into his uncle’s soup, because he had become exasperated by his loud snoring.

According to the police report, on August 17, during lunch, the teen’s uncle sensed an unusual taste in the soup he was served and spat it out, but soon started exhibiting symptoms like mouth numbness and stomach pain, which required medical attention.

Samples from his bowl of soup were found to contain a lethal amount of the toxic substance known as oleandrin.

“I couldn’t stand my uncle’s loud snoring and decided to kill him,” the 18-year-old teenager allegedly told police during questioning.

Oleander is an evergreen tree that blooms with red or white flowers and is commonly planted as a street or park tree. Its branches and leaves are toxic.

Luckily, the teen’s uncle, a 53-year-old self-employed man who lived with the boy and his mother, made a full recovery.

Headline

Six Dead, Others Trapped As Gold Collapse

Published

1 day ago

September 6, 2025

Editor

Six people have been killed and up to 20 others are feared trapped after a gold mine collapsed in northern Sudan, authorities said on Saturday.

The accident occurred on Friday in the Um Aud area, west of the city of Berber in River Nile state, said Hassan Ibrahim Karar, executive director of the Berber locality.

“Efforts are ongoing to rescue those trapped beneath the rubble,” Karar said, without specifying the cause of the collapse of the artisanal mine.

Since fighting erupted in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, both sides have largely financed their war efforts through the country’s gold industry.

Official and NGO sources say nearly all of Sudan’s gold trade is funnelled through the United Arab Emirates, which has been widely accused of supplying arms to the RSF — a charge it denies.

Despite the conflict, the army-backed government announced record gold production of 64 tonnes for 2024.

Sudan, Africa’s third-largest country by area, remains one of the continent’s top gold producers.

However, most gold is extracted through artisanal and small-scale mining operations, which lack proper safety measures and often use hazardous chemicals, resulting in severe health risks for miners and nearby communities. Buy vitamins and supplements.

Before the war pushed 25 million Sudanese into acute food insecurity, artisanal mining employed more than two million people, according to industry figures.

Today, mining experts say much of the gold produced by both warring factions is smuggled through Chad, South Sudan and Egypt before reaching the UAE — currently the world’s second-largest gold exporter.

The conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced roughly 10 million people, creating the world’s largest displacement crisis. An additional four million Sudanese have fled across borders.