Sudan keeps key aid crossing from Chad open for hard-hit Darfur region as famine grows

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — Sudan’s military-controlled government on Wednesday said a key border crossing with Chad will stay open to keep much-needed humanitarian aid flowing into the hard-hit Darfur region.

The decision on the Adre crossing followed a meeting with United Nations agencies and local and international aid groups, Sudan´s ruling Sovereign Council said in a statement.

The border crossing, which was closed earlier this year, was reopened in August for three months by the Sovereign Council to address the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Darfur. Famine has been confirmed in the Zamzam displacement camp near al-Fasher, West Darfur´s provincial capital.

The war in Sudan erupted in April 2023 between Sudan´s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. Global experts with the Famine Review Committee warn that more than 25 million people — more than half of Sudan’s population — are expected to face acute hunger this year.

The war has also created the world’s largest displacement crisis, with more than 14 million people forced to flee their homes.

The Adre crossing is a lifeline. Over the last three months, more than 300 aid trucks have crossed into Sudan there, carrying assistance for more than 1 million people.

Aid groups on Wednesday welcomed the news of the extension and urged all parties to stop obstructing humanitarian assistance.

¨This decision, if sustained and supported with streamlined processes, could be a lifeline for the 5.3 million children and families on the brink of starvation," Mathilde Vu, advocacy manager in Sudan for the Norwegian Refugee Council, told The Associated Press.

The international community should seize the moment and scale up funding to accelerate the response, she said.

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Mednick reported from Dakar, Senegal.