Briefing of Security Council Senior UN political and humanitarian officials on Monday described a sharply deteriorated security and humanitarian situation, marked by indiscriminate attacks, expanding territorial gains by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and escalating dangers for civilians, aid workers and peacekeepers.

THE the conflict broke out in April 2023 amid a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF. Since then, fighting has spread across the country, devastating cities, displacing millions of people and plunging parts of the country – including parts of Darfur – into famine conditions.

Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Khaled Khiari said fears that the dry season would lead to increased fighting had been confirmed.

“Each passing day brings staggering levels of violence and destruction,“, Mr. Khiari told the ambassadors.Civilians are enduring immense and unimaginable suffering, with no end in sight.»

Kordofan emerges as a new hot spot

In recent weeks, the conflict has focused on the Kordofan region, where the RSF has made significant territorial gains, capturing Babanusa in Western Kordofan on December 1, followed a week later by the seizure of Heglig in Southern Kordofan – a key oil field and processing hub for South Sudan’s crude exports.

Kadugli and Dilling, both in Southern Kordofan, are now under increasingly strict siege conditions, with continued bombings and drone strikes. Reports indicate that SAF personnel withdrew from some areas to South Sudan, while South Sudanese forces moved into Sudan to protect Heglig’s oil infrastructure.

“These developments reflect the increasingly complex nature of the conflict and its growing regional dimensions,Mr Khiari warned, warning that Sudan’s neighbors could be drawn into a wider war if the situation is not resolved.

Deadly drone strikes, peacekeepers killed

A particularly alarming trend, according to UN officials, is the increasing use of drones by both sides. On December 4, a kindergarten in Kalogi, South Kordofan, was struck, followed by an attack on the hospital treating the victims.

“More than 100 people were killed in this despicable attack, including 63 children,» said Mr. Khiari.

Drone attacks have also directly targeted UN personnel. On December 13, strikes hit a United Nations logistics base in Kadugli, killing six Bangladeshi peacekeepers serving in the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and injuring nine others.

UNISFA has launched an investigation amid difficult security conditions, while all UN personnel have been evacuated from Kadugli until further notice. Mr. Khiari stressed that attacks on peacekeepers “may constitute war crimes” and demanded accountability.

The humanitarian crisis worsens

Edem Wosornu, director of crisis response at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), says civilian suffering spread across multiple fronts, with Kordofan becoming a new epicenter of humanitarian needs.

As well as targeting civilians, aid workers and convoys have also been struck – injuring aid workers, seriously affecting rescue programs and forcing UN agencies and NGOs to move staff from several locations due to insecurity.

Meanwhile, the situation in Darfur remains catastrophic. The UN continues to receive reports of massacres and sexual violence following RSF’s takeover of El Fasher earlier this year, including atrocities committed during the April offensive against the Zamzam IDP camp.

Calls for protection, access and peace

As the conflict approaches 1,000 days, the two officials urged the Council to act decisively to protect civilians, ensure humanitarian access and press for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

“The Council must send a strong and unequivocal message,” Ms Wosornu said: “that attacks against civilians and violations of international humanitarian law will not be tolerated.»

Mr. Khiari echoed the call, urging international donors on both sides to use their influence to end the fighting and support a Sudanese-led political process.

“The UN is fully engaged,” he said, “work with all international actors to end the violence – in the interests of the Sudanese people and regional stability.»

This has caused casualties and disrupted aid operations over the past 24 hours, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters at Headquarters in New York.

Yet efforts to provide assistance to the most vulnerable families continue during the cold and wet winter season, although a rescue mission to reach an injured person in Gaza City was turned away.

Lack of shelter

“Faced with a severe lack of shelter in the Gaza Strip, people remain in partially or largely damaged buildings as they try to protect their families from the elements,” he said.

Several buildings collapsed over the weekend due to stormy conditions, causing casualties, according to humanitarian partners.

Additionally, three-quarters of female-headed households are in urgent need of shelter, and two-thirds are in desperate need of clothing.

Dujarric said UN partners continue to work to improve access to dignified shelter for the estimated 1.3 million people in Gaza.

Lift restrictions on entry of aid

Over the past week, some 3,500 families affected by storms or living in flood-prone areas have received tents, bedding sets, mattresses and blankets, while more than 250,000 children have received winter clothing.

“However, our partners estimate that 630,000 adolescents across the Gaza Strip still need assistance with winter clothing,” he added.

“We and our partners are once again calling for the lifting of all restrictions on the entry of aid into Gaza, including shelter materials, as these constraints obviously hamper humanitarian efforts to reach populations, particularly in this winter and cold season. »

Meanwhile, humanitarians continue to coordinate aid missions in Gaza, and half of the attempts Sunday were facilitated by Israeli authorities.

Teams collected six tanker trucks full of fuel, more than 270 pallets of medical supplies and other essential food items from the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing, as well as the Zikim crossing.

Between Friday and Monday morning, Ukrainian authorities said that more a dozen civilians were killed and more than 70 others injured, including two children. Disruptions to basic services were reported in more than 270 cities and towns.

These attacks occur in a harsh winter context in Ukraine and in a context of growing humanitarian needs. attacks last week also disrupted services and caused several deaths.

Almost daily attacks

The Odessa region is particularly affected and suffers almost daily attacks, according to OCHA. On Friday, a nighttime attack targeting port infrastructure killed eight civilians and injured 27 others. Repeated strikes have also cut power, affecting tens of thousands of people.

Additionally, Dnipro, Kharkiv and Mykolaiv saw their energy infrastructure hit, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. A health facility and a school were also damaged during the attacks. Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia also suffered losses.

Ukrainian authorities told OCHA that a warehouse storing humanitarian aid was damaged in the Mykolaiv region.

Half-funded appeal for help

In the Sumy region, around 40 people have been evacuated to safer areas over the past three days, OCHA said. Meanwhile, in the Donetsk region, almost 330 civilians, including 50 children, were evacuated.

In total, since June, nearly 150,000 people have been evacuated from front-line areas, including more than 16,500 children and more than 5,000 people with reduced mobility.

Aid workers have managed to reach more than 700,000 people near the front lines this year. However, funding gaps persist, leaving more than a million people without clean water and limiting access to protection and gender-based violence services.

$2.6 billion this year call for Ukraine it is only half financeat nearly $1.4 billion.

Senior UN political and humanitarian officials are due to brief the Security Council this afternoon as members meet to discuss the rapidly deteriorating situation in Sudan, where intensifying fighting – including in the Kordofan region – has led to civilian damage and mass displacement. The region has seen sharp escalation, including a deadly drone attack on a U.N. peacekeeping base that killed six Bangladeshi peacekeepers. The meeting was requested by Sudan and transitional Prime Minister Kamil Eltayeb Idris is expected to attend. Follow live below and UN News app users can Click here.

More than 4.6 million people across the country, or around a quarter of the population, are affected, according to local authorities.

“Partners say at least 120,000 people were displaced between September and December, as water prices soar, food becomes scarce, livestock die and livelihoods collapse. » OCHA said in a update.

Additionally, more than 75,000 students nationwide were forced to drop out of school.

Conditions expected to deteriorate

The upcoming dry season, from January to March, is expected to worsen drought conditions, OCHA said, warning of impacts including increased water scarcity, more livestock deaths and the potential for greater food insecurity in many parts of the country.

“Authorities are appealing for urgent assistance to avert a possible collapse of pastoral and agricultural livelihoods and to avoid avoidable loss of life. They warn that the next four months will be critical, as the next rainy season is not expected until April 2026,” the update said.

OCHA stressed that the UN and its partners are mobilized – “supporting assessments, mapping available stocks of supplies and coordinating emergency responses in the water, food, nutrition, health and shelter sectors”.

Humanitarians are also providing cash assistance, animal fodder and rehabilitating boreholes, while visiting sites on the ground to assess the severity of the situation and review resources for rapid action.

However, their efforts are seriously limited by significant funding gaps.

Last month, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcherassigned 10 million dollars from Central Emergency Response Fund(DEER) – which provides rapid assistance in times of conflict and climate-related disasters – “but much more support is urgently needed,” OCHA said.

As 2025 draws to a close, the $1.4 billion humanitarian response plan for Somalia has only received about $370 million, about a quarter of the required funding, leaving critical gaps in rescue programs.