The United Nations Human Rights Council will convene a special session on today Friday, November 14, to address the deteriorating human rights situation in and around El Fasher, Sudan.

The emergency meeting, scheduled for 9 a.m. at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, was requested by the United Kingdom and supported by 24 member states, including Germany, France, and South Africa.

The session follows the Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) recent capture of El Fasher, a famine-stricken city in Darfur, and mounting reports of civilian killings and abductions. It will be the Council’s 38th special session and the third focused on Sudan since 2021.

The required threshold of one-third support—16 of 47 members—has been exceeded, with 24 member states backing the move and 31 observer states, including Canada and Norway, expressing support.

The meeting comes amid stalled efforts to implement a U.S.-Arab-backed proposal for a three-month humanitarian truce. While the RSF has endorsed the plan, the Sudanese army has yet to agree. The conflict, which began in April 2023, has displaced millions and resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.

An open-ended consultation will precede the session, though the United States is not expected to participate in the Universal Periodic Review process. OHCHR spokesperson Pascal Sim emphasized the urgency of the gathering, stating it “addresses urgent de-escalation needs.”

The session will be webcast in six languages to ensure broad international access and transparency.