Sudan expels two senior World Food Programme officials amid escalating tensions
Laurent Bukera, head of the WFP office in Sudan, and Samantha Chattaraj, the agency's operations director, were summoned by the ministry and formally notified of their expulsion, the Sudan News Agency (SUNA) reported.
Sudan's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday declared two senior officials from the World Food Programme (WFP) persona non grata and ordered them to leave the country within 72 hours, according to state media.
Laurent Bukera, head of the WFP office in Sudan, and Samantha Chattaraj, the agency's operations director, were summoned by the ministry and formally notified of their expulsion, the Sudan News Agency (SUNA) reported.
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While the ministry did not specify reasons for the move, it stated that Sudan remained "fully committed to cooperating with all international organisations operating in the country according to internationally recognised systems and laws, including respect for state sovereignty."
It emphasised that the decision "does not affect ongoing cooperation with the WFP."
The expulsion comes amid intensified fighting in El-Fasher, North Darfur, where the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) claim to have seized control following the withdrawal of Sudanese army units.
Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said the pullout was meant to avoid further "systematic destruction and killing" of civilians.
UN humanitarian coordinator Denise Brown has urged the RSF to allow civilians safe passage out of the city, while Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) appealed for protection and humanitarian access.
Since April 2023, Sudan's war between the army and RSF has killed thousands and displaced over 15 million people, in what has become one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
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