Hide from drones
“Many described leaving the area and seeing dead bodies along the way..” He said he had met women and children who in some cases had been walking for days, “hiding from the drones, carrying only their children.”
The statements come amid the intensification and expansion of violence in Sudan, following the capture of the regional capital El Fasher by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) last month from government troops, after more than 500 days of siege.
Ms Pope said the scale of the need “coincides with a time when there have been unprecedented humanitarian cuts to humanitarian assistance around the world”.
Less than 5,000 aid kits available
IOM is providing shelter, basic dignity kits and cooking kits to those who need them most, but right now, funding for that response falls far short of what is needed, Ms Pope warned: just eight per cent.
Less than 5,000 kits were available at a warehouse in Port Sudan, and 35 IOM tents are ready for distribution.
Some countries and partners have been asking for additional information or data on the funding situation, but the magnitude of the need is so great that the agency “trying to catch up right now,” Ms. Pope said.
Joint humanitarian efforts
IOM is in contact with the United Nations aid coordination office (OCHA) and the World Food Program (WFP) to secure resources.
“By visiting various parts of the country, We can give the world a full picture of what needs to happen to support especially vulnerable civilians. “who flee from violence.”
U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher was in Sudan this week and is expected to brief reporters from there on Monday.
Ms Pope said that while IOM has trucks going to Tawila, a town about 60 kilometers from El Fasher, access is extremely limited and the agency is providing support primarily to those leaving.
Many aid workers have also been victims of violence in recent months, with some injured or killed, Ms Pope added.
Preparations for an “intensification of hostilities”
UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned Wednesday that there has been no letup in the killing of civilians.
Addressing the French Senate, he said his office (OHCHR) continues to receive alarming reports that RSF is “carrying out atrocity crimes, including summary executions, sexual violence and other violations.”
He added that in the Kordofan region there were “clear preparations to escalate hostilities as killings and destruction increase.”
Türk urged countries to respect the arms embargo imposed by the Security Council in Darfur, highlighting that the priorities are the protection of civilians, humanitarian access and the return to civilian government.