|PIC1|The United Nations’ leading humanitarian official has issued a warning to the international community Thursday, saying that the situation in Sudan’s devastated Darfur region was escalating out of control.

The UN’s Jan Egeland told how the situation has become increasingly dire, with attacks and sexual attacks by militia and rebel factions continuing to wreak havoc across the region despite the peace deal which was signed 3 months ago.

The Sudanese government was urged to provide more support to the peace deal which was signed on 5 May 2006 between the government and Darfur’s main rebel group.

It was warned, however, that the peace deal was “doomed to failure” unless some substantial safeguarding of its conditions were implemented.

Jan Egeland told reporters at the U.N.'s European headquarters in Geneva: “It's going from real bad to catastrophic in Darfur.”

|TOP|Fighting has actually increased since the peace deal, "and it has been particularly terrible among (rebel) factions fighting each other," said Egeland. "That's led to tens of thousands of people being displaced, and sexual abuse and many other types of violations."

Since 2003, more than 200,000 have been killed due to the fighting, which began as African tribal factions rebelled against the Arab-led Khartoum government.

Even though the peace deal signalled great hope for a new period of peace to open up in Sudan, the deal has in fact triggered more intense fighting between the factions of the Sudan Liberation Army.

On Wednesday, a report from the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights requested that the Sudanese government and all parties involved immediately comply with the peace deal’s provisions.

|AD|The international community was also called upon to provide support for the African Union force operating in Sudan until a full UN operation could be deployed to the region.

The report, which was 20 pages, stated: “The government should disarm the militia and protect the physical security of all Darfurians by putting in place a credible, capable and professional police force and judiciary.

“Civilian populations continued to be targeted by militia and the government and rebel movements are in breach of the new ceasefire.”

The renewed violence has halted aid operations into the affected areas also, with the UN reporting that some 250,000 who desperately needed aid in June could not be reached by agencies.

The UN’s latest figures reveal how the situation has continued to deteriorate, with estimates that 25,000 people were newly displaced by fighting in the July.