UNITED NATIONS, June 11 (Xinhua) -- Escalating violence in and around El Fasher, Sudan, is taking a grim toll on civilians, including children and humanitarian workers, and displacing thousands more, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
"Despite these dangers, humanitarians continue to deliver life-saving assistance to people in need," said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The intensifying fighting in and around El Fasher, the capital city of Sudan's North Darfur State, has claimed the lives of at least six children since Friday and injured many more, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported. Thousands of children, including those living in large displacement camps, are trapped in the middle of the increased fighting and are not able to reach safety.
"UNICEF urges all parties to immediately de-escalate the situation, allow the safe and voluntary movement of civilians, and ensure the protection of civilians, including children and women, and civilian objects," the humanitarians said.
OCHA said an aid worker for a nongovernmental organization died on Monday due to complications from a June 1 bullet wound.
"He was the sixth aid worker killed in Sudan in the past six weeks," OCHA said. "In Sudan and in conflicts everywhere else in the world, humanitarians must be protected."
The UN Refugee Agency reports three trucks carrying core relief items reached North Darfur from Chad via the Tine crossing. The supplies were distributed to more than 1,100 families in two localities near the border.
The World Health Organization (WHO) distributed nearly 20 metric tons of emergency health supplies to 18 health facilities and five stabilization centers in North Kordofan State.
"This vital assistance will meet the emergency and primary health care needs of displaced people and host communities," OCHA said. "WHO has also managed to reach South Kordofan's Abu Jubayhah region for the first time this year to deliver emergency health supplies."
OCHA said the humanitarian community in Sudan is working against the clock to stave off famine and mitigate Sudan's most pressing humanitarian needs. But, this is challenging given current funding shortfalls. This year's humanitarian appeal for Sudan is just 16 percent funded, with less than 441 million U.S. dollars received of the 2.7 billion dollars required. ■
