Top diplomats meet in Paris to mobilize aid for Sudan, wracked by war and on the brink of famine

By BARBARA SURK and SAMY MAGDY
Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — A yearlong war in Sudan has devastated the country and pushed its people to the brink of famine. Top diplomats and aid groups are meeting on Monday in Paris to drum up humanitarian support for northeastern African nation to prevent further collapse and misery. The Sudanese army and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, will not be represented at the conference. Sudan descended into conflict in April last year when simmering tensions between the military and the paramilitary group exploded into open warfare. The U.N. humanitarian campaign needs some $2.7 billion this year to get food, health care and other supplies to 24 million people in Sudan. So far, funders have given only about 5%.