Darfur

The United Nations reports a 20-fold increase in the number of Sudanese refugees crossing into Chad, as fighting and hunger drive people from the Darfur region and beyond. Aid agencies warn funding is running dry, leaving food, water and shelter dangerously short for the growing influx. Humanitarian groups are calling for urgent international support to prevent a wider regional crisis.

The number of Sudanese refugees crossing into Chad has surged sharply, with new arrivals reporting rape and abductions during their flight from the war in Sudan. Aid agencies and local authorities face mounting pressure to protect and shelter the growing displaced population along the border, as fighting continues to drive civilians from Darfur and surrounding regions into eastern Chad.

The International Organization for Migration reports that displaced people from Sudan's Darfur region are crossing into Chad to escape ongoing fighting. The agency also documented the displacement of more than 2,000 people from El Fasher to Tawila in recent days, driven by deteriorating security conditions in the area.

The arms embargo on Darfur expires on Saturday and must be renewed by the UN Security Council to remain in force. The debate, reported by German daily taz, centres on whether the embargo should be extended amid the war in Sudan, with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the United Arab Emirates' alleged role, and regional spillover into Libya and Chad drawing attention. Critics warn that letting it lapse could fuel further violence.

A drone attack on a court assembly in Darfur, Sudan, has killed at least 35 people. A rights group has blamed the army for the strike, which hit as people gathered at a judicial compound. The attack underscores the escalating violence in Sudan's civil war, which has devastated the Darfur region and repeatedly targeted civilian gatherings.