The UN Security Council has renewed its sanctions on Sudan for just two months, after members could not agree on a US proposal to extend the Darfur arms embargo to the whole country. The vote came as the WHO warned of severe shortages in Darfur.

The United Nations Security Council on Thursday, October 8, unanimously renewed its sanctions regime on Sudan, but only for two months, until December 11, UN News reported.

The regime consists of targeted sanctions and an arms embargo. The mandate of the panel of experts that monitors them now runs to January 11, 2027.

A ‘Technical Rollover’

The text, drafted by the United States, is what diplomats call a “technical rollover”: a short renewal that leaves the mandate unchanged. It follows a one-month rollover adopted on September 11.

Short extensions of this kind are usually a sign that members cannot agree on something larger. That was the case here.

The Proposal That Failed

According to news reports cited by UN News, Washington had wanted to extend the arms embargo from Darfur to the whole of Sudan and to all parties in the current war, and to address drones and dual-use technology.

That effort did not win consensus. Around half of the Council’s members reportedly preferred a one-year renewal limited to Darfur.

The sanctions regime dates from the Darfur conflict of 2004, when the Council moved to stem the flow of weapons into the region.

The Situation on the Ground

The vote came on the same day that the World Health Organization warned of conditions in Darfur. More than 700,000 displaced people in Tawila face severe shortages of healthcare, food, water and protection, the agency said.

Darfur hosts 65 percent of Sudan’s 8.6 million displaced people, according to the International Organization for Migration.

The WHO said only 23 percent of its $97.7 million humanitarian appeal for Sudan for 2026 has been funded.

“I have witnessed the immense scale of health and humanitarian needs in Tawila and other parts of Darfur,” said Dr Abdinasir Abubakar, the agency’s top official in Sudan, who visited health facilities across the region during a 10-day mission in September.

War and Stalled Diplomacy

The war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces continues. On October 3, an aerial attack on two trucks contracted by the World Food Programme in South Kordofan killed a driver.

Diplomatic efforts remain stuck on a US-backed proposal for a 90-day ceasefire, which the army has resisted, according to news reports cited by UN News.

Investigators appointed by the UN Human Rights Council have warned that outside support is sustaining the military capabilities of both sides.

Image: The UN Security Council chamber in New York, 2024. Photo by Jdforrester via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.