A speaker reading a joint statement on behalf of multiple signatory countries to the Security Council strongly condemned widespread gender-based violence in Sudan and urged urgent action to protect women and girls.

The reader, identified in the transcript only as “Unidentified Speaker,” said the signatories — including Denmark, France, Greece, Guyana, Panama, the Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and the United Kingdom — “express our deep concern about the grave situation of women and girls in Sudan,” adding that as conflict continues and the humanitarian crisis deepens, “women and girls are enduring immense suffering.”

The statement said the signatories “strongly condemn the persistence of widespread … gender based violence across Sudan,” and accused parties of increasingly using conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence “deliberately as a tactic of war.” It listed attacks including abductions, trafficking, forced displacement and other severe abuses, and said children “including infants and toddlers” have been among victims and survivors.

The reader framed the abuses as violations of international law, saying they “constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law and may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.” The statement called on all parties to halt attacks on civilians and to take concrete steps to ensure protection for women and girls.

On humanitarian needs, the statement urged immediate expansion of access to quality health and reproductive-health services and information “free from coercion, discrimination, and violence.” It also cited reports of attacks on medical facilities, including “deliberate attacks and killings in the maternity hospital,” and warned that “nearly three quarters of women-headed households” are facing food insecurity.

On accountability, the signatories welcomed international efforts to document violations and support investigations, “including those by the International Criminal Court and independent international fact Finding Mission for Sudan.” The statement expressed support for the named expert team (transcript: “SRHG Patton”) and urged preservation of evidence and centering survivors’ voices in accountability processes. It also said the signatories support “the use of Security Council sanctions against perpetrators of such crimes.”

The statement concluded by stressing that women’s “full equal meaningful and safe participation” is essential to any lasting political solution in Sudan, and that women-led organizations — described in the statement as central to humanitarian response and community resilience — remain “severely underfunded and excluded from decision making.”

The statement called on the Security Council to keep the situation of women and girls “at the forefront of its deliberations on Sudan.” The transcript of the reading does not specify the date or the name of the reader.