UN urges Sudan neighbours to keep borders open 

Nairobi, Kenya (AFP):

The head of the UN’s refugee agency on Tuesday urged Sudan’s neighbours to keep their borders open despite security worries.

Filippo Grandi warned in an interview with AFP that the two-month-old war threatened to spread insecurity in the “fragile” nations that border Sudan.

“My appeal to all the neighbouring countries is to say I understand your security concerns, but please keep your borders open because these people are really fleeing for their lives,” he said during a visit to Nairobi to mark World Refugee Day.

Sudan has been riven by conflict since April 15, with the army led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan battling the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commanded by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

“It is a worrying situation. Many of these neighbouring countries are very fragile and there is also an element of insecurity that risks spreading,” Grandi said.

The death toll in Sudan has risen above 2,000, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project’s latest figures.

“We are unfortunately gradually seeing the destruction of this country,” Grandi told AFP, echoing remarks made by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at Monday’s donor conference.

“It is a worrying situation because we have not seen much progress, if any, in the negotiations between the two generals who are fighting in the country,” Grandi said.

“This must stop because it risks having incalculable consequences in the region and beyond.”