US pledges about $172m in aid to Sudan and neighbouring countries

North African nation has been plagued by conflict since April

Women carry their belongings in Omdurman, Sudan's most populous city. AFP

The US has pledged about $172 million in additional humanitarian aid for war-ravaged Sudan and neighbouring countries, the State Department announced on Tuesday.

The North African country has been gripped by a bloody conflict since violence erupted between rival military factions on April 15.

The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces led by Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary organisation headed by his former deputy Gen Mohamed Dagalo, has plunged the country into deep uncertainty.

It has displaced more than two million people internally, with more than 500,000 Sudanese having fled to neighbouring countries, according to the UN.

More than 2,000 people are believed to have been killed since fighting first broke out, according to the latest figures issued by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

With the additional $172 million, the US has now given more than $550 million in assistance to Sudan and neighbouring countries including Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Sudan and the Central African Republic.

“For this humanitarian assistance to have the greatest possible impact and save countless lives, Sudanese authorities must remove the onerous bureaucratic and security restrictions that are hindering shipments of life-saving aid,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

“Life-saving supplies are being held at customs and are routed through long, dangerous roads in order to reach communities most in need.”

Successive ceasefires have failed to quiet the violence and the two sides have walked away from negotiations led by Washington and Riyadh.

“While we seek to identify further ways to help, we continue to believe that a ceasefire and negotiated solution are the best ways to achieve a long-term solution that addresses the causes of this humanitarian crisis,” said Mr Blinken.