The United Nations has raised alarm over escalating instability in the Central African Republic (CAR), as Sudan’s brutal civil war increasingly spills across the border.
A Zambian UN peacekeeper was killed last week in an ambush near CAR’s northeastern border — an attack UN officials have confirmed was carried out by armed Sudanese fighters. UN Peacekeeping Chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix warned the Security Council Thursday (26 June) that Sudan’s conflict, primarily between the national army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), is endangering CAR’s fragile peace. UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ latest report cited multiple RSF sightings in the border regions of Am Dafok and Aouk.
Sudan has been gripped by war since April 2023, with more than 24,000 dead and millions displaced. Now, that violence is increasingly bleeding into CAR, a nation already struggling with its own decade-long internal conflict. CAR’s UN Ambassador Marius Aristide Hoja Nzessioue warned of a “real threat,” citing Sudanese incursions, youth recruitment by foreign militias, and compromised sovereignty. The country is also hosting over 36,000 Sudanese refugees as of June.
As CAR prepares for pivotal general elections in December, Lacroix emphasized that international support remains vital. “If these efforts are sustained … the Central African Republic has the potential to become a true success story — not only for Central Africans, but also for Peacekeeping and for this Security Council,” he said — while cautioning that border instability continues to pose a significant threat to regional security and democratic progress.