This week, Sudan military leader writes to Trump about peace. Human rights chief demands UN access to blocked Yemen city. Thailand and Cambodia Agree to use naval hotline to avoid sea flare-ups.
Sudan Military Leader Writes to Trump About Peace
On October 15, Sudan’s army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stated on X that he wrote to US president Donald Trump restating his commitment to ending the war in the north African country.
Al-Burhan said, “The Government of Sudan is ready to work in good faith with all parties for a just, lasting peace that safeguards our sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, and our people’s dignity.”
This development comes after Sudan’s anti-war coalition, which includes civilian and political groups, met with the ‘Quintet’ Mechanism group—which consists of the African Union (AU), UN, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Arab League, and European Union (EU)—at the AU’s headquarters on October 12 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to discuss a framework for peace.
The framework is based on three parallel tracks: a temporary ceasefire, humanitarian aid delivery, and a comprehensive political dialogue.
Human Rights Chief Demands UN Access to Blocked Yemen City
On October 20, UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk spoke out against the Houthi armed group’s closure of the only supply route linking the city of Taiz to Aden. Turk said the closure was “blocking humanitarian aid and cutting off essential supplies.”
Due to the closure, prices of commodities have multiplied, leaving many without food or other basic necessities. There have also been restrictions on safe access to water and essential goods through the Al-Dhabab route, worsening the humanitarian situation.
Turk said, “Humanitarian aid must be immediately allowed to enter the city and its passage must be facilitated. Civilians wishing to leave must be allowed to do so freely and safely.”
On September 22, 2026, the The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that 128,000 people across the country had been displaced by fighting since August 1. According to the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), this number represents a 78 percent jump from pre-escalation numbers.
Between August 1 and October 19, UN Human Rights verified that 32 civilians have been killed across Taiz Governorate, including 14 children and 9 women, while 115 civilians were injured, among them 36 children and 34 women.
Thailand and Cambodia Agree to Use Naval Hotline to Avoid Sea Flare-ups
Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to use a naval hotline in order to avoid flare-ups over their dispute on an energy-rich area of sea in the Gulf of Thailand, according to a UN-backed mediation panel at The Hague tasked with helping to settle the dispute.
From September 14 to 16, both country’s foreign ministers led delegations in the first conciliation meeting with the five-member UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) commission in Singapore.
Thailand and Cambodia’s competing maritime territorial claims accelerated after Thailand terminated a 2001 Memorandum of Understanding with Cambodia in May 2026. Tensions between the two countries had already accelerated after a land border conflict intensified in the July 2025. This conflict came to a ceasefire in December 2025.
Keywords: Sudan, Yemen, Thailand, Cambodia, naval, navy, siege, Houthis, peace, conflict, conflict resolution
Tara Abhasakun is Peace News Network (PNN)'s managing editor. She is journalist based in Christchurch, New Zealand, and formerly in Bangkok, Thailand. She has reported on a range of human rights issues involving youth protests in Thailand, as well as arts and culture. Tara's work has appeared in several outlets, including Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.
