New York, Dec. 23 (Petra) - The United Nations Security Council discussed overnight the deteriorating situation in Sudan, hearing a briefing by Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific Khaled Khiari.

Khiari said each passing day brings shocking levels of violence and destruction in Sudan, with civilians enduring "immense and indescribable suffering, with no horizon for an end to this suffering." He noted that fighting has focused in recent weeks on the Kordofan region, where the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have made "significant gains." He referred to recent reports indicating that elements of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) withdrew from Babanusa and Heglig to South Sudan, and that South Sudanese forces entered Sudan to protect oil infrastructure in Heglig.

Khiari warned that these developments reflect the growing complexity of the conflict and its expanding regional dimensions, cautioning that failure to address them could draw Sudan’s neighbors into a regional conflict in and around the country.

//Petra// NQ