Action 'urgent' on Chad refugees

Half of Darfur's population will soon be displaced, says John Holmes

Chad is facing an imminent refugee crisis, according to UN humanitarian chief John Holmes.

With thousands of refugees arriving daily due to the conflict in Darfur, he says action is needed before Chad's rainy season starts in three months.

More than 2.4 million people have been displaced due to the crisis in Sudan's war-torn province of Darfur.

Mr Holmes presented his findings to the United Nations Security Council after a week-long visit to the region.

Humanitarian disaster

The UN is putting in place a 90-day plan to meet urgent humanitarian needs before the rains start.

More than a third of Darfur's population is now living in refugee camps, with a further 250,000 refugees in neighbouring Chad and the Central African Republic.

It's a political crisis and a political disaster, and the humanitarian problems stem from that John Holmes UN humanitarian chief

Mr Holmes says the central African region faces the "horrifying prospect" that half of Darfur's population will soon be displaced after four years of fighting.

"It's a political crisis and a political disaster, and the humanitarian problems stem from that," he said.

Next month marks the first anniversary of the failed Darfur peace agreement, but few of Darfur's rebel groups have signed up to the accord.

The deployment of UN peacekeepers to help struggling African Union troops has also been delayed.