UN 
(UNITED NATIONS) – Bünyamin Sürmeli – At the United Nations building in New York, UN Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator Toby Harward held a press conference to assess the humanitarian situation in Sudan. The UN team conducted a two-week field mission in Darfur.
“This mission had two goals: To enable the UN to establish a permanent base on the ground and to work with local authorities.”
Harward said her team met with local authorities, NGOs, internal migrants and other vulnerable communities in Zalingei and Jebel Marra counties. The team visited several IDP camps in Zalingei and Jebel Marra and assessed the situation of IDPs on the ground.
Harward said that available data indicates that more than 300,000 people have fled Al Fasher. The situation in the area is desperate, he said, adding that IDPs are trying to survive on tree leaves, grain husks and the remains of peanuts.
“Many IDPs are living in thatched huts filled with water and are demanding basic shelter materials, food, nutrition and medical supplies,” Harward said. In Golo, he said, 70 IDPs were living in one school classroom and children’s education had been disrupted.
Noting some positive developments, Harward said that people in SLA-AW controlled areas feel safe and that host communities are providing food on a regular basis. He also said that agricultural activities are continuing and they are hoping for a successful harvest.
Harward said the UN has been able to move more than 320 trucks from Chad into Darfur in recent weeks, but stressed that more access is needed. He noted that the opening of the Adre border crossing would speed up access routes and allow humanitarian aid to reach vulnerable populations more quickly.
