Sudan intensifies pressure on UN to exit Darfur

Sudan has intensified the pressure on UN, towards the withdrawal of peacekeepers from Darfur, after Sudanese authorities declined to renew a permit for the head of its humanitarian coordination office in Khartoum, Ivo Freijsen.

The UN has said that the refusal translated to being effectively expelled from the country, and Khartoum has not given any justification for its decision.

This comes as discussions with the Security Council on the renewal of the UN mission in Darfur approach in June.

Questionable Darfur referendum held in April already being used by Khartoum to push UNAMID exit agenda https://t.co/jVKnvi8R1b #Sudan

— Nuba Reports (@NubaReports) May 23, 2016

However following a referendum vote on the administrative status of the Darfur province in April, Khartoum considers the conflict over.

Currently, there are about 20,000 troops from more than 30 countries deployed in Darfur as part of a joint UN-African Union mission in Darfur (UNAMID).

The mission was launched in 2007, to combat violence in Darfur, where a bloody conflict has left 300,000 people dead, and some 2.5 million others displaced, according to the UN.