UN urges Sudan and the rebel (SPLM-N) to refrain from violence against civilians

Khartoum-SudaneseOnline-UN Security Council urged Sudan and the rebel Sudan People Liberation Movement- North (SPLM-N) to refrain from violence against civilians and expedite humanitarian access for timely delivery of aid to all civilians in need of assistance, condemning the recent lethal attacks on civilians in the disputed Abyei Area
In a statement on Thursday, the UN Security Council expressed concerns about the dire situation resulting from continued fighting in Sudan’s South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.
The Council members welcomed the recent peace talks between Sudan’s Government and SPLM-N under the auspices of AUHIP in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, saying that progress made was overshadowed both parties’ failure to reach a final agreement, calling the two parties
to cease hostilities, engage in the next round of direct talks without conditions in January as planned by the AUHIP, and make the necessary concessions to reach a deal on ending the conflict in the Two Areas in accordance with provisions of resolution 2046 (2012).
Meanwhile, members of the UNSC reiterated their grave concern about the “relatively calm, but highly volatile security situation” in Abyei Area, and the absence of progress in implementing the 20 June 2011 Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for the Security and Administration of the Abyei Area as reported by the Secretary-General, while condemning the recent deadly attacks on civilians.
The Security Council also reiterated, in accordance with relevant resolutions, in particular resolutions 1990 and 2046, that the Abyei Area shall be demilitarized from any forces, as well as armed elements of the local communities, other than UNISFA and the Abyei Police Service.