The Council of Ministers of Sudan’s Peace Government has called for the protection of civilians and the establishment of safe humanitarian corridors in El Obeid.
They cited ongoing humanitarian concerns and the need to facilitate civilian movement and aid delivery.
In a statement on Monday, June 29, the government said it is engaged in discussions with international partners regarding civilian protection, humanitarian assistance, and the creation of secure routes for residents seeking to leave areas affected by conflict.
The statement, signed by Information Minister and Official Spokesperson Khalid Danaa, accused the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and allied militias of preventing residents from leaving the city, using civilians as human shields, shelling residential neighbourhoods and forcing civilians to participate in military operations.
The Peace Government urged the international community to pressure the military factions to allow civilians to leave El Obeid freely, end what it described as forced recruitment, stop attacks on residential areas and support the establishment of safe humanitarian corridors.
"Field reports and ongoing monitoring indicate that these forces continue to impose severe restrictions on civilian movement, prevent residents from leaving the city, and forcibly compel civilians to bear arms and participate in military operations," the statement noted. "Such practices constitute grave violations of international humanitarian law," Danaa observed.
The allegations come as the United Nations Security Council warned of an "imminent risk of mass atrocities" in El Obeid and demanded an immediate halt to attacks on the city.
The Peace Government also accused the Muslim Brotherhood and what it described as "its army" of rejecting repeated international calls for a humanitarian ceasefire.
The statement did not provide evidence supporting the alleged link between the group and the military forces.
The Sudanese Armed Forces did not immediately respond to the allegations, and the claims made in the statement could not be independently verified. Both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces have faced allegations from international organisations of violating international humanitarian law during the conflict, claims both sides deny.
El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, has remained under siege-like conditions for more than 18 months. The city sits on key transport routes linking central Sudan with Darfur, making it strategically important to both sides in the conflict.
The International Rescue Committee warned on Monday that without an immediate halt to hostilities, El Obeid risks becoming another city where civilians are trapped by conflict, while neighbouring White Nile state could struggle to cope with another influx of displaced people.
The aid agency explained that continued fighting has disrupted access to food, medicine and fuel, leaving civilians with dwindling supplies and limited access to essential services.
Ten consecutive days of drone strikes have killed at least 50 civilians across El Obeid and North Kordofan and damaged civilian infrastructure, according to a statement delivered at the United Nations Human Rights Council on behalf of at least 29 countries.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk drew parallels with El Fasher, where a similar 18-month siege ended in an offensive that UN officials said bore the hallmarks of genocide.
"We have seen this playbook before," Türk warned. "We cannot allow the repeat of the preventable atrocities we documented in El Fasher and Zamzam IDP camp in North Darfur last year," he added.
The Peace Government reaffirmed its readiness to work with the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the African Union and the United Nations to establish humanitarian corridors and secure what it described as an unconditional humanitarian ceasefire to protect civilians, deliver aid and evacuate the wounded and sick.
Drone strikes accounted for at least 880 civilian deaths between January and April 2026, representing more than 80 per cent of all conflict-related civilian fatalities recorded during the period, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Sudan's civil war began in April 2023 after a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces over plans to integrate the paramilitary force into the national army.
The conflict has displaced more than 14 million people and left more than 21 million facing acute hunger, according to the United Nations.
