The top United Nations envoy in Sudan today expressed grave concern over renewed hostilities which have forced up to 50,000 people to flee fighting in the disputed town of Abyei, which lies in an oil-rich area near the boundary between north and south Sudan.

Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General's Special Representative in Sudan, expressed "his deep regret" that fighting had resumed early this morning so soon after Government and the former southern rebels had struck an agreement to end the clashes in Abyei, under the auspices of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS).

An impasse over the boundaries and status of Abyei has been one of the major stumbling blocks preventing the full implementation of the January 2005 comprehensive peace agreement (CPA) that ended the long-running north-south civil war in Sudan.

Fighting in Abyei has displaced between 30,000 to 50,000 people southwards, leaving the town almost deserted.

The UN has set up five humanitarian hubs to help the displaced population, but operations are being endangered by continuing insecurity. Aid workers reported aerial bombing of a position to the north of one of the hubs.

Mr. Qazi has appealed to both sides to exercise the utmost restraint and to take immediate steps towards disengaging their forces. The UN envoy said this would enable UNMIS to revive ceasefire monitoring mechanisms and pave the way for full implementation of the CPA with respect to Abyei.

Source: UN News Service