UN envoy to Sudan resigns after being declared 'persona non grata'

UNITED NATIONS

UN special envoy to Sudan, Volker Perthes, announced his resignation Wednesday after the country’s military government declared him ''persona non grata'' in July.

''I am grateful to the Secretary General for that opportunity and for his confidence in me, but I have asked him to relieve me of this duty,'' Perthes told the Security Council.

Sudanese officials had accused Perthes of inflaming the conflict in Sudan and demanded for his removal.

The deadly fighting erupted between the army led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group in April and has shown no sign of abating.

''What started as a conflict between two military formations could be morphing into a full-blown civil war,'' Perthes warned in his last briefing to the Council.

More than 3,000 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in clashes since April in the war-torn country.

Several cease-fire agreements brokered by Saudi Arabian and US mediators have failed to end the violence.