GENEVA: The UN has issued a “stark warning” over preparations for intensified fighting in Sudan’s Kordofan region, as it made a new call for an end to the violence. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, who have been locked in conflict with Sudan’s regular army since April 2023, announced on Thursday that they had agreed to a humanitarian truce proposal made by mediators. Following the RSF capture of El-Fasher in late October — the army’s last major stronghold in western Darfur — the paramilitaries appear to be shifting their focus eastward toward Khartoum and Kordofan.

The group issued the statement after an 18-month siege of the city of el-Fasher in the western Darfur region.

The Rapid Support Forces have faced accusations of genocide and war crimes following the mass killing of thousands of people in Darfur.