UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is appalled by reports of large-scale violence and casualties across Sudan, a spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Guterres called on Sudan's warring parties to cease fighting and commit to a “durable” cessation of hostilities, said UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric in a statement.

The conflict-hit African nation has been engulfed by violence for weeks between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group.

“He is highly worried about the increasing ethnic dimension of the violence, as well as by reports of sexual violence,”' Dujarric said.

Guterres urged all parties to protect civilians.

“With nearly 9 million people now urgently requiring humanitarian aid and protection in Darfur, he stresses the need for an end to looting and widened access,'” Dujarric said.

The humanitarian situation is reaching a “breaking point” in Sudan, according to the UN, with goods essential for people’s survival becoming scarce in the hardest-hit urban centers, especially the capital Khartoum.

Over 13.6 million children are in urgent need of lifesaving humanitarian support in Sudan, the highest number ever recorded in the country, amid intense fighting, according to the UN children's agency, UNICEF.

More than 700 people have been killed, including 190 children, and 6,000 others injured, according to the UN.

Over 1 million residents have been displaced and more than 840,000 have sought shelter in rural areas and other states while another 250,000 have crossed Sudanese borders.

Disagreement had been fomenting in recent months between the two sides about the integration of the RSF into the armed forces -- a key condition of Sudan's transition agreement with political groups.

Sudan has been without a functioning government since the fall of 2021, when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok's transitional government and declared a state of emergency in a move decried by political forces as a "coup."

The transitional period, which started in August 2019 after the ouster of President Omar al-Bashir, had been scheduled to end with elections in early 2024. (Anadolu Agency)