Darfur arms embargo extended by UN for two months

The UN Security Council on Thursday extended the arms embargo on Sudan’s Darfur region by two months, without expanding it to the rest of Sudan as the United States had sought.

The 15-member council unanimously adopted a technical extension while negotiations continue behind the scenes.

Washington failed to secure agreement on broadening the embargo after opposition from veto-holding Russia and China, which have argued for keeping the existing sanctions regime.

Sudan’s war is now in its fourth year. It has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions as more sophisticated weapons, including armed drones, are used on the battlefield.

The army holds central and eastern Sudan, while the rival Rapid Support Forces control Darfur in the west and parts of the south. Darfur has faced some of the worst violence, including attacks on displacement camps and repeated ethnic massacres.