London - British aid agency Oxfam confirmed Thursday that its licence to operate in northern Sudan had been revoked by the government in Khartoum.

The agency is among 10 foreign aid organizations that have been banned by the Sudanese government following the international arrest warrant against President Omar al-Bashir.

Oxfam, which said it would appeal the decision, urged the government of Sudan to allow it to continue its "vital humanitarian efforts, affecting hundreds of thousands of lives."

Penny Lawrence, Oxfam's International Director, said the withdrawal of its registration would affect more than 600,000 people who were being given "vital humanitarian and development aid, including clean water and sanitation on a daily basis."

Of those, 400,000 were affected by the ongoing conflict in Darfur where people continued to flee from violence and the humanitarian needs remained "enormous."

Oxfam GB has operated in northern Sudan since 1983 and currently has 450 staff there, 90 per cent of whom are Sudanese.

Lawrence said Oxfam had "absolutely no links" to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague which issued an arrest warrant against al-Bashir Wednesday. (dpa)