According to the IRC, 25 million people in Sudan are estimated to be in need of urgent humanitarian aid and protection. 

Qatar is set to co-chair a high-level pledging conference for much-needed humanitarian support to Sudan and the region in Geneva on Monday as the conflict in Khartoum enters its second month.

In a statement on Wednesday, Qatar’s foreign ministry said its co-chairmanship of the meeting “comes in the context of its continued support for the brotherly Sudanese people.”

“Since the beginning of the fighting in Sudan, the State of Qatar has provided 266 tonnes of food and medical aid, via an air bridge, and evacuated 1,784 Qatari residency holders,” the statement added.

The statement renewed Doha’s calls for an immediate end to fighting in Khartoum and “sparing civilians” of its consequences.

“It also expresses the State of Qatar’s aspiration that all parties pursue dialogue and peaceful ways to overcome differences. In addition, the Ministry affirms Qatar’s full support for all regional and international efforts to find a solution to the crisis,” the statement added.

The event will be chaired by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Germany, the European Union, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

“The kingdom continues its good endeavours to alleviate the afflicted there, and it hopes that this human tragedy will end very soon.,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said in a tweet on Tuesday.

Violence in Sudan has been on the rise since the conflict erupted on 15 April between the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese army. Saudi Arabia and the US have continued to push for an end to the conflict despite several fragile ceasefires.

On Tuesday, reports pointed to a growing frustration from Washington towards the warring factions in Sudan, two months into the violence.

“We think we’ve given them every shot,” AFP quoted a senior State Department official saying on the condition of anonymity.

The official added that the sides “are clearly not taking advantage of the format” they were given, adding that the US will provide a recommended approach “in the next few days”.

“I think a real question that we’re facing is how much more mileage do we think you might get out of Jeddah on that step-by-step approach?” another US official told the French news agency, referring to meetings in Saudi Arabia.

To date, the death toll has reached at least 1,800 and more than 1.5 million people have been displaced, per figures by the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Sudan already hosts one of the largest displaced populations in Africa.

According to the IRC, 25 million people are estimated to be in need of urgent humanitarian aid and protection. 

“On the current trajectory, Sudan will become the next Syria: the world’s largest humanitarian crisis both in terms of people in need and displacement to neighbouring countries and beyond,” David Miliband, IRC’s President and CEO, said on Wednesday.

Miliband warned that “a complex and protracted conflict would have catastrophic and destabilising implications for the region, especially for Chad and South Sudan.”