NEW YORK – U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih said there is no military solution to Sudan’s war, calling for a humanitarian truce and serious political dialogue involving civilians to pave the way for lasting peace.

Addressing the U.N. Security Council on forced displacement, Salih said Sudan was facing the world’s largest displacement crisis and warned that humanitarian assistance alone could not create the conditions needed for millions of people to return home and rebuild their lives.

“Humanitarian assistance can keep people alive,” Salih said, stressing that it could not provide the peace Sudanese people need to return and rebuild.

He called on the parties to the conflict to demonstrate political will, support a humanitarian truce and engage in serious dialogue that includes civilians.

Salih said more than 117 million people worldwide had been forced from their homes by conflict, violence, persecution and other threats, warning that displacement was increasing much faster than durable solutions were being found.

He described peace as the most sustainable solution to forced displacement, saying humanitarian workers deal with the consequences of wars every day but cannot themselves end conflicts.

The refugee chief urged Security Council members to use their influence, collectively and individually, to help bring Sudan’s war to an end.

He also called for stronger protection of civilians, respect for international humanitarian law and sustained humanitarian access to populations affected by the conflict.

Sudan’s war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began in April 2023 and has forced millions of people from their homes, both inside Sudan and across its borders.

The displacement crisis has placed growing pressure on neighboring countries, including Chad, South Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia and other states hosting Sudanese refugees.

Salih stressed that protecting refugees and internally displaced people should not replace efforts to find political solutions to the conflicts that force them from their homes.

He said durable solutions should be integrated into recovery and peacebuilding efforts from the beginning of humanitarian responses.

The U.N. refugee chief also called for greater support to countries and communities hosting refugees, as well as areas receiving returnees, so that people can return voluntarily, safely and with dignity when conditions allow.