Sudan civilian bloc urges UN to expand arms embargo, mandate truce

September 21, 2026 (NEW YORK) – Sudanese anti-war civilian groups on Monday urged the United Nations Security Council to mandate an immediate nationwide humanitarian truce, protect civilians, and widen an arms embargo to cover the entire country.

Repeated international and regional diplomatic pushes have failed to halt the fighting between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, leaving millions displaced and critical infrastructure shattered.

A delegation from the Somoud coalition, led by former prime minister Abdalla Hamdok, arrived in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to urge world leaders to act decisively.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the coalition urged the Security Council to halt external interference by extending the Darfur arms embargo across all of Sudan and holding violators accountable.

The coalition called for an inclusive political process leading to a democratic civilian transition, while demanding the exclusion of the dissolved National Congress Party of former autocrat Omar al-Bashir and allied Islamist factions.

The group also urged international bodies not to confer legitimacy on any military or de facto authorities ruling by force.

A durable resolution, the civilian groups said, requires a comprehensive ceasefire alongside a political framework that addresses the root drivers of the conflict.