Foreign ministers from Germany, Jordan and the United Kingdom issued a joint appeal Saturday for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan, warning that the escalating violence has pushed the

country to the brink of catastrophe.

Their call came amid mounting evidence of atrocities in the Darfur city of el-Fasher, which was recently seized by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. U.N. officials say RSF fighters have stormed the city, killing hundreds—including more than 450 people inside a hospital—and carrying out ethnically targeted attacks and sexual violence. The RSF denies attacking the hospital, but satellite imagery, survivor accounts and videos on social media indicate widespread killings.

Speaking at the Manama Dialogue security summit in Bahrain, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper described the situation as “truly horrifying,” warning of mass executions, starvation and the systematic use of rape as a weapon of war.

“For too long, this terrible conflict has been neglected,” Cooper said. “No amount of aid can resolve a crisis of this magnitude until the guns fall silent.”

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul called conditions in Sudan “absolutely an apocalyptic situation,” while Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said the crisis “has not received the attention it deserves,” urging swift international action.

The summit unfolded under tension after Bahrain withdrew The Associated Press’ accreditation on Wednesday, citing a “post-approval review.” The move followed an AP report on imprisoned activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja launching a new hunger strike. Al-Khawaja ended the strike Friday after receiving letters from the EU and Denmark, according to his daughter Maryam al-Khawaja. Photo by Henry Wilkins/VOA, Wikimedia commons.