UN says 4m in Darfur need aid - UN & AU call meeting of rebel groups refusing to sign Darfur Peace Agreement

Nov 23 2006 AP report by Edith M Lederer - U.N.: Four Million in Darfur Need Aid - via Guardian. Excerpt:

In a report to the UN Security Council and comments to reporters afterward, he [Jan Egeland] said the best hope for peace is an agreement last week between Sudan and the United Nations that could open the door to the deployment of thousands of UN troops in Darfur as part of a "hybrid" UN-African Union force.

The agreement also called for a revitalized effort under UN and AU auspices to persuade more rebel groups to sign the Darfur Peace Agreement.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan, briefing the council later, said the AU and the UN would soon call a meeting of groups that have refused to sign the peace agreement "with the hope of resolving outstanding issues by the end of the year."

If there is "massive pressure on the parties" from all 15 members of the Security Council, and from Asian, African and Islamic countries, Egeland said, "we may make historic deals on the political front."