Guterres made a statement to the press after the Sudan session at the UN Security Council.
Noting that the UNSC and the Secretary-General have separate areas of responsibility in the Sudan issue, Guterres said, “I have once again informed the Council that I have full confidence in the Council, the UN UNITAMS President and the UN Sudan Representative Volken Perthes, in line with my area of responsibility.”
“It’s up to the UNSC to decide whether to continue the mission (UNITAMS) for another term,” Guterres said.
The mandate of UNITAMS, which was established in 2021 by the decision of the UNSC, expires on June 3, 2023.
Sudan calls for alternative nomination to Perthes
Guterres had called the UNSC meeting to discuss the situation in Sudan.
General Abdulfettah al-Burhan, Chairman of the Sudan Sovereignty Council and Commander of the Army, asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to nominate an alternative candidate to UN Sudan Representative Volker Perthes.
Guterres has stated that he continues to support Perthes.
Clashes between the army and the HDK in Sudan
The army wanted the Rapid Support Forces (HDK), which it once supported but considered a threat because it acted as an independent and parallel army, to be fully integrated into the army within 2 years. The war of words and the escalating tension, which started with the announcement that he could do it, turned into an armed conflict between the parties in the capital Khartoum and various cities on the morning of April 15.
The HDK, which was formed in the form of a militia structure to fight against the rebels, protect the borders and maintain order in Darfur during the period of President Omar al-Bashir, who was overthrown in a coup d’état in 2019, and has gained an increasingly independent structure, has tens of thousands of members.
Stating that more than one million people were displaced within the country, the UN announced that 300,000 people fled to neighboring countries due to conflicts.
The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that 850 people lost their lives and 5,500 were injured due to the ongoing conflicts in Sudan.