Rubio emphasises importance of Sudan ceasefire in call with UAE counterpart

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasised the importance of achieving a humanitarian ceasefire in Sudan in a call with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed on Friday, just days after Washington's top diplomat said action was needed to cut off the flow of weapons to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary RSF, which began in April 2023, has created what the UN has called the world's largest humanitarian crisis at a time when global aid budgets are shrinking.

Some 12.5 million Sudanese were displaced within and outside the country as of mid-October, with an additional 140,000 since fleeing RSF attacks on El-Fasher and towns in the Kordofan region.

UAE rejects claims it supports RSF

Sudan's army has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the RSF with weapons, a claim which UN experts and US lawmakers have found credible.

The UAE ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Jamal Al Musharakh, on Thursday rejected claims that the UAE provides support in any form to either of the warring parties.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Rubio said Washington was doing everything it could to end the fighting and apply pressure to the parties involved.

"Something needs to be done to cut off the weapons and the support that the RSF is getting as they continue with their advances," Rubio said.

Asked about the UAE's role in the conflict, Rubio held back from naming it directly but said: "We know who the parties are that are involved ... that's why they're part of the Quad, along with other countries involved. I can just tell you at the highest levels of our government that case is being made and that pressure is being applied to the relevant parties."

"This needs to stop."

He did not rule out designating the RSF a terrorist organisation, saying the US would take such a move if it would help end the fighting.

The fall of El-Fasher to the RSF on 26 October cemented its control of the Darfur region in the more than 2-1/2-year civil war with the Sudanese army.

Tens of thousands of people who have fled El-Fasher are unaccounted for, the UN refugee agency said on Friday, raising concerns for their safety after reports of rape, killings and other abuses from escapees.