Sudan's ambassador to the UK has called on Britain to rein in the United Arab Emirates after accusing the country of helping fuel the civil war that has killed more than 60,000 people. Ambassador Babiker Al-Siddiq Mohamed Al-Amin said the UAE had been supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, a powerful military group locked in a bloody conflict with government forces.
Over 60,000 people have died since the fighting began more than three years ago, with an estimated 12 to 14 million forced to leave their homes. The UAE has previously been accused of supplying the RSF with arms, including Chinese-made drones, Serbian-made vacuum bombs, and Nimr armoured vehicles. The Gulf state has denied any involvement in the conflict.
Ambassador's appeal to Britain
Ambassador Al-Amin told Sky News: "We have much in common, and expect them [Britain] to help us in ending this war. This war cannot be ended without preventing the militia being armed, and being provided with the capability of committing atrocities, and threatening the lives and the wellbeing of our people."
The Mirror has approached the Foreign Office for comment.
Conflict background
The conflict began in April 2023 when a power struggle erupted over moves to integrate the RSF into the national army. The RSF militia has since been accused of widespread atrocities, including ethnic violence, mass killings, sexual violence, and war crimes in regions like Darfur. The Sudanese army (SAF), backed by Egypt, Iran, and Russia, is in turn alleged to have carried out indiscriminate aerial bombing and obstructed life-saving humanitarian aid.
International response
On Tuesday, Ambassador Sarah MacIntosh, the United Kingdom's Permanent Representative to the UN, told a Security Council meeting that Number 10 "welcomes and supports work to broker a humanitarian truce" led by the US, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and UAE in the conflict. She called on other nations to help protect civilians and reminded both sides that "new technology and new tactics do not change their fundamental obligations to comply with international humanitarian law".
Ambassador MacIntosh added: "Sudan has become a battlefield where restrictions are too often ignored and protections too often fail. Our action to change that could mitigate the human suffering of the people trapped in these wars." Britain is supplying £147 million in aid to Sudan this year, which aims to reach over 1.8 million people with food, nutrition, healthcare, clean water, and protection.
