The special representative of the United Nations Secretary General for Sudan Volker Perthes on Wednesday announced his resignation following tensions with Khartoum as the country approaches five months of fighting between the army and a paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Perthes had been the UN representative to Sudan for more than two years, heading up the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) that was created in 2020 after the ouster of former leader Omar al-Bashir.
"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 UN Security Council, adding: "This will therefore be my last briefing in this function."
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said Perthes' resignation was accepted, adding "he has very strong reasons."
Perthes warned again Wednesday that the conflict between the Sudanese forces under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary RSF of General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo is in danger of further deterioration.
"What started as a conflict between two military formations could be morphing into a full-scale civil war," he said, as "the fighting shows no sign of abating while neither side appears close to a decisive military victory."
Perthes also stressed that it is necessary "to impress on the warring parties that they cannot operate with impunity, and there will be accountability for the crimes committed."
Last month, when Perthes did not show up to a UN briefing on the conflict, the United States accused Sudan of having threatened to expel the UN mission, with ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield claiming Khartoum had vowed to end the mission if Perthes participated.
The Sudanese ambassador denied the claim.
Since April 15, nearly 7,500 people have been killed, according to a conservative estimate from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.