“We are simply not going to sit back and watch while 100,000 people starve to death,” an anonymous state department official reportedly told The National.

A decades-long civil war officially ended last year with the creation of South Sudan, which is backed by the United Nations.

Sudanese government officials reportedly say plans to feed people in Sudanese territory are actually a scheme to further strengthen forces loyal to South Sudan.

The UN reportedly wants the Arab League and African Union to monitor US activity to assure the Sudanese government the efforts are, indeed, humanitarian in nature.

Meanwhile, war continues between forces loyal to Sudan and South Sudan.

“There has been fresh fighting in Sudan’s Blue Nile state, rebel and government forces said on Thursday, after the United States warned of a possible ‘horrific’ famine affecting civilians in the area,” AFP reported. “The rebels said they shot down a helicopter gunship sent in to rescue a convoy caught in a forest ambush that killed 26 members of the Sudan Armed Forces.”

Historically, Sudan is more “Arabized” than South Sudan. One of the arguments South Sudan has made is Sudan tried to impose Islam on South Sudan, which is a combination of animist and Christian.

“Stability of governance not totalitarianism was the trend which the Ingaz approach adopted since it has held the Dialogue Conference on Peace Issues in its first year,” the Sudanese government said last year. “The Ingaz is still keen to realize its genuine goals.”