The UN and United States launch a humanitarian fund for Sudan

The United States and the United Nations are mobilizing international support for Sudan, launching a new Sudan Humanitarian Fund with $700 million in pledges from the US and the United Arab Emirates.

The Trump administration announced Tuesday it will contribute $200 million from a $2 billion global humanitarian fund, while the UAE pledged $500 million. Saudi Arabia and other participants also promised support, though they did not specify amounts.

"Today we are signaling that the international community will work together to bring this suffering to an end, and to ensure lifesaving aid reaches communities in such desperate, desperate need," said UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, who co-hosted the Washington event with US senior adviser for Arab and African affairs Massad Boulos. 

Fletcher said progress is expected by the start of Ramadan on February 17, and Boulos noted the US has proposed a comprehensive humanitarian truce that could be finalized in the coming weeks.

Sudan has been engulfed in conflict since 2023, with clashes between the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary and the Sudanese military. 

The UN estimates over 40,000 deaths, though actual figures may be far higher. The conflict has produced the world's largest humanitarian crisis, displacing more than 14 million people, with famine declared in several regions of Sudan.