Millions more people may be plunged into hunger amid the six-day-old explosion of violence between forces backing two rival generals in Sudan - where a record one-third of the population was already short of food, the UN World Food Programme warned on Thursday.
WFP has been forced to call a temporary halt to operations giving life-saving food and cash assistance in Sudan, where it planned to support over 7.6 million people this year, the UN agency stated.
The ongoing fighting is preventing WFP from delivering critical emergency food, providing school meals for children, or preventing and treating malnutrition, the statement said.
WFP also cannot carry out its work to support farmers to boost agriculture output as part of a project aiming to more than double Sudan’s annual wheat production, nor help people rebuild their livelihoods.
Three WFP employees have lost their lives in the violence, while two others sustained severe injuries and WFP’s staff, offices, vehicles, equipment, and food stocks have come in the direct line of fire.
WFP guesthouses, offices, and warehouses in Nyala, South Darfur have been overrun and looted, with the loss of up to 4,000 metric tonnes of food, while the UN Humanitarian Air Service, which WFP manages, has been completely grounded.
One UNAHS aircraft has been damaged beyond repair at Khartoum International Airport and at least ten vehicles and six food trucks have been stolen, according to the statement.
UNHAS normally flies to over 30 destinations in Sudan carrying around 26,000 passengers and light humanitarian cargo annually, WFP noted.
WFP urged the warring factions to end hostilities, guarantee the safety of aid workers and protect "humanitarian assets and premises in Sudan".
The agency called for a peace agreement that allows vital food and humanitarian aid to reach Sudan's population.
