Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)

To be frank, the two main parties to this conflict - the Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF, and the RSF - show absolutely no signs of willingness to negotiate a ceasefire, let alone a peace agreement. The conflict is becoming increasingly internationalised with external actors involved, refugee displacement and spillover risks, including in neighbouring Chad and South Sudan.

Since the beginning of 2025, the SAF has made significant military gains and ousted the RSF from Khartoum. The RSF holds most of Darfur and has been laying siege, as the Deputy said, to El Fasher, the last stronghold, for over 500 days. Frankly, there has been very limited humanitarian access to El Fasher. The conditions described and borne witness to by Declan Walsh are as bad as can be imagined. I do not in any way underestimate this. It is the worst humanitarian disaster happening in the world today. The outlook is considerably bleak as it stands. From an Irish point of view, we will of course continue to fund and work every avenue possible to bring peace to the area, but also to increase and add volume to humanitarian aid and, crucially, access.

See this speech in context