United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon said Sudan's expulsion of 13 aid groups would cause "irrevocable damage" to humanitarian operations in Darfur.

The Sudanese government has launched a major offensive against rebels in war-torn Darfur in recent days, human rights activists and African Union officials said tonight.

The UN now estimates that about 180,000 people have died in Sudan’s western Darfur region as a result of violence, disease or malnutrition since October 2003 – ,more than twice the previous estimate.