Ethiopian soldiers participate in field training exercise in Gebeit, Sudan on Nov. 25, 2017. The field training exercise of Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF), dubbed "Mashariki Salaam II," started Saturday in Gebeit military base in eastern Sudan. (Xinhua/Mohamed Khidir)

IGAD Quartet meeting on Monday resolved to request a summit of the East Africa Standby Forces to consider the possibility of deploying the regional troops in Sudan.

The group led by President William Ruto and deputized by President Salva Kiir said the force will protect civilians and guarantee the safe passage of humanitarian assistance.

The IGAD mediation team says it is concerned by the worsening humanitarian situation in Sudan and has decided to take concrete steps to facilitate immediate humanitarian assistance to Sudanese affected by the conflict.

“The IGAD Quartet group further resolve to request the East Africa Standby Force (EASF) summit to convene in order to consider the possible deployment of the EASF for the protection of civilians and guarantee humanitarian access,” said an IGAD Communique published after its first meeting in Addis Ababa.

The Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF) is one of the five regional forces for Peace Support Operations (PSOs) in the continent, consisting of military, police, and civilian components.

The force constitutes the regional operational arm of the peacekeeping elements put in place by the 2002 Protocol establishing the Peace and Security Council of the African Union.

As of January 2018, EASF has ten member states including Burundi, South Sudan, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, and Sudan.

The group said it is appalled by serious human rights abuses including sexual violence targeting girls and women.

The team says it will work closely with the international community to put in place robust monition and accountability mechanisms that will bring perpetrators to justice.

then appeals to countries bordering Sudan to ease the delivery of relief packages and relax border barriers.