THE NEW KILLING FIELDS IN DARFUR, SUDAN

The BBC's first class Panorama documentary "The new killing fields" aired on British TV last night.

It asked whether the first genocide of the 21st century is occurring in Darfur. The documentary left the viewer in little doubt that Darfur was genocide.

British Foreign Office Minsiter Chris Mullin, was interviewed, and made it clear there was no intention to intervene militarily with European troops who would get shot at from all sides with catastrophic repercussions for the whole of Africa. He rejected international intervention as complicated. "If any western force did intervene it would become very bogged down. Some new call for all the jihadists in the world would emerge and we'd find ourselves very quickly being shot at from all sides," he said.

BBC's Hilary Andersson, who for much of this year has been reporting from Darfur (and deserves an award) went on the trail of the killers to find out who the Janjaweed are. Travelling behind the rebel lines to areas where no television team has previously reached, the Panorama programme uncovered evidence of systematic killings on a horrifying scale. She also investigated where their orders are coming from and confronted the tribal head Hilal who is number one on the US State Department's list of suspected Janjaweed leaders.

Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Osman Ismail, wearing a European style business suit, shirt and tie, was interviewed. He said Sudan's government has bombed towns in Darfur, but only to put down a regional uprising by the Sudan Liberation Army rebels. But survivors told a different story.

Note, another excellent report by Hilary Andersson in Darfur, from the Sunday Times yesterday: Genocide lays waste Darfur’s land of no men.


The Janjaweed are said to have shot children at this school in Kidinyir
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FRUSTRATION OF DARFUR 'OBSERVER'

African Union Commander Seth Appiah Mensah told the BBC's Panorama programme that the remit he was working under was "highly restrictive" but added that he had no doubt that the Sudanese government was arming the Janjaweed militia.

"The government of Sudan forces and the militia work closely together in that area. It is difficult to distinguish who is who," he said. Read more in the Frustration of Darfur 'observer'.


Commander Seth Appiah Mensah of the African Union
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Darfur in quotes


UN Secretary General Kofi Annan
Panorama asked if the first genocide of the 21st century is occurring in Darfur.

Here are some key quotes from the programme and from people connected to the conflict.

"One of the reasons for our failure in Rwanda was that beforehand we did not face the fact that genocide was a real possibility. And once it started, for too long we could not bring ourselves to recognize it, or call it by that name."
Kofi Annan, April 2004 (speaking on the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide)

"We concluded that genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the government of Sudan and the Janjaweed bear responsibility, and that genocide may still be occurring. We believe that the evidence corroborates a specific intent to destroy a group in whole or in part."
Colin Powell, September 2004

"Genocide's not a word that I think should be bandied around lightly, for fear of devaluing the term. No-one doubts that there've been massive human rights violations, certainly crimes against humanity, committed in Darfur."
Chris Mullin, Foreign minister

"Our position is clear, that what has been going on is not a genocide, this is an American attempt to use a humanitarian situation for a political agenda."
Dr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Sudanese foreign minister


Mustafa Osman Ismail, Sudanese foreign minister

"My words are very clear in this regard. The war has its repercussions. The rebels started this war. They started burning and destroying many of the villages. They started destroying our villages first.
Musa Hilal, suspected Janjaweed leader


Musa Hilal - Arab tribal leader and 'leader' of the Janjaweed

"My son was clinging to my dress. An Arab looking man, in a uniform with military insignia, stopped his car next to me. He grabbed my son from me and threw him into a fire."
Kalima, resident of the village of Kidinyir, Darfur

"The government never initiated this war. The rebels, who are not denying it, they are the ones who initiated this war and insist on continuation of this war."
Dr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Sudanese foreign minister

"When they say we will go and fight the rebels, they lie. They do not actually go to fight the rebels. Instead they raid the villages and the small scattered communities and seize people's possessions."
Anonymous former Janjaweed recruit

"It's highly restrictive. Highly restrictive because we are not even allowed to look into issues like rape and other things. Highly restrictive because it only gives us an ability to observe, verify and report."
Commander Seth Appiah Mensah, African Union soldier in Darfur

"The children started jumping out of the windows of the classes, when they saw the 'Janjaweed' coming into the school. Some of the children were trying to run from the school, others were trying to hide inside. They killed two or three of the students who stayed in the classes. They were also shooting the other children who were trying to run away."
Hikma, teacher in the village of Kidinyir, Darfur
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VIEWERS HAVE THEIR SAY ON THE NEW KILLING FIELDS



Read viewer's comments to the BBC on its New Killing Fields Panorama programme.

Sudan's forces will return to retake territory they've lost - Danforth is asked should US send troops?

In the Shilluk kingdom, in southern Sudan, it is nature and not man which seems to be keeping the peace.

In blackspots like Shilluk, where there was large-scale violence this year, a stream of rainy season floodwater, too deep for a pick-up filled with troops to cross safely, runs between the opposing frontlines. Analysts fear that when the dry season comes, later this month, government forces will return with a vengeance and seek to retake the territory they have lost.

WHAT IS THE WORLD DOING ABOUT IT?

This Thursday and Friday, the UN security council is holding a special session in Nairobi to focus attention on two disasters: (1) southern Sudan (2) and Darfur in western Sudan. They aim to pressure Sudan's genocidal dictator Bashir and the southern rebels of John Garang, to sign a final peace deal aimed at ending two decades of war.

Agreements in Sudan have been known to be written in disappearing invisible ink - and are not worth the paper they're written on.

Khartoum agreed to a no-fly zone recently, as well as signing a ceasefire in April. But a lack of trust and inability by leaders on both sides to control forces on the ground has meant that violence is on the increase. The ceasefire has been repeatedly violated by both sides.

The U.S. has ruled out sending their own troops. Britain could be asked to contribute peacekeeping troops to an international force for Darfur.

The US ambassador to the UN, John Danforth, has hinted that offers of aid may be withdrawn if a peace agreement is not reached swiftly in the south.
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LEANING ON A RUBBER STICK

The United States revises its strategy on Sudan, seeks UN aid if peace deal signed

Two previous UN Security Council resolutions have threatened Khartoum with sanctions if it fails to curb the violence.

Sudan has not complied with Security Council demands over three months to disarm, arrest, and prosecute Arab militia.

An offer of financial aid marks a strategy shift by the United States. John C. Danforth, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said that although the threat of sanctions stands, the Security Council meeting in Nairobi on Thursday and Friday will focus more on the "carrot" than the "stick."

The United States changed course on Sudan after facing stiff opposition to sanctions, including a Chinese threat to block the United States from adopting a UN resolution punishing Khartoum over Darfur, according to a senior US official involved in the discussions.

"Are we leaning on a rubber stick? Sure," Danforth acknowledged in an interview. "It would clearly be extremely difficult to get a resolution that actually imposes sanctions in the Security Council adopted. We're doing the best we can with that particular tool."
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JOHN DANFORTH IS ASKED:
Should the United States send troops?

November 9, 2004. Gwen Ifill talks with John Danforth, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, about the latest efforts to end the violence in Darfur and the planned U.N. meeting to address a nationwide peace for Sudan. Here is an excerpt:

Q: GWEN IFILL: There have been at least, by my count, six protocols or agreements that have been worked out in the past. None of them had been enforced. Where is the incentive for the government of Sudan or the rebels, for that matter, to sign on to anything this time?

A: JOHN DANFORTH: You're absolutely right. The history of Sudan for years has been a whole series of agreements that have been reached -- they turn out to be paper agreements, it's as though they're written in disappearing ink -- and they don't amount to anything. So what we have found in dealing with Sudan is it's important for the international community to have a continuing presence, to be there with monitors, to be there guaranteeing what was done on paper, to be there with peacekeepers. And this is part of the future that we hope to lay out when we're there. If they reach a peace agreement, the world is not going to go away. We're going to continue to be very, very engaged in the future of Sudan. So the hope is that the continuing international engagement in Sudan will provide a more durable peace.



Q: GWEN IFILL: Does the world have to do more than watch, though? I understand an African problem that the African Union is trying to resolve. But at what point does the United States, independent of the United Nations perhaps, have to assert its own forceful, independent, perhaps boots-on-the-ground effort to control what's happening, especially in the Darfur region?

A: JOHN DANFORTH: Well, some have argued that. And they say that notwithstanding the U.N., the U.S. should go it alone. I mean, this would really be unilateralism if that's what we did. But it's not the position of the African Union. I think that because we are, our military is really extended, very engaged very much in other parts of the world right now, it's doubtful that we're going to do that. I think it would be impossible to get the Security Council to agree to that. So I believe that the most practical thing that could be done right now, basically two things that are the practical that could be done: One is the deployment of the African Union in Darfur in the most numbers that we can get in there. I think that's very positive; and the second is to wrap up the North-South peace agreement, and that's why we're going over to Nairobi next week.

Read the full transcript.
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SUDAN AWARENESS DAY


u.s. students urge action against Sudan violence. Yale students participate in a vigil to kickoff today’s Sudan Awareness Day. Groups will encourage letter writing to U.S. and UN representatives. (SOPHIE PERL/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER)

Students urge action against Sudan violence, says the Yale Daily News:

Bearing candles and green ribbons, nearly 30 students gathered at a vigil Sunday evening to raise awareness about the ongoing violence in Darfur.

The vigil was an opportunity for Yale students to think about the meaning of genocide. It introduced Monday's Sudan Awareness Day, when student representatives from Amnesty International and Students Take Action Now: Darfur will be tabling on Cross Campus and in dining halls. Those tabling will encourage students to write letters petitioning U.S. and UN representatives to take action to stop what group members described as a genocide.

At the vigil, students circled around a chalked silhouette of the African country to read aloud Sudanese refugees' testimonies about the rape and violence they have experienced at the hands of the Sudanese government and the government-backed Janjaweed milita. They also read testimonies from survivors of the Rwandan genocide and the Holocaust.
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Note, Eleonora Sharef '07, who helped set up the vigil, urged those who attended to spread the word across the campus. "We think that with pressure from the U.S. something can change," Sharef said. "Spread the word about this to your friends."

U.S. activists pressing public pension funds to divest $91 billion in Sudan

Full Story and more from the Sudan Campaign



Displaced Sudanese children pray Saturday, Nov. 13, 2004, in the Kalma refugee camp near Nyala town in Sudan's western Darfur region. The children were saying special morning prayers marking Eid al-Fitr, the feast that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Ramadan was deemed by clerics in Sudan to be over Saturday. (AP).
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JANJAWEED 'LEADER' DENIES GENOCIDE

Panorama documentary The new killing fields will be broadcast on television in the UK at 22:15GMT on Sunday, November 14 on BBC One.
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UK BAND AID SONG RE-LAUNCH FOR DARFUR

Today, after 20 years, a new version of the Band Aid 1984 hit, Do They Know it's Christmas? is being recorded in England.

The single will be released on 29 November to raise money for famine relief in Darfur.

Duke students begin replica of Darfur suffering - Germany to send airlift planes to Sudan - Britain may deploy troops

This photo shows a group of Duke students working on putting up the first structure of what they intend to be a Sudanese refugee village replica at Duke on Friday.

The students are putting up a refugee type structure modelled after those in Darfur to raise awareness of the suffering and plight of the victims of genocide in Darfur Sudan. Here is a copy of a November 13 report from The Herald-Sun in America:



DURHAM -- The tent looked rickety, ready to fall to the slightest gust. But then, that's the point. A group of Duke undergraduates spent Friday afternoon propping up the structure, the beginning of a planned replica of a refugee village designed to draw attention to Darfur.

"We have to acknowledge that a genocide has happened," said Damjan Denoble, one of the project's organizers.

That crisis inspired the Duke students to build their own refugee village. They hope to add nine more to the first tent -- essentially a dirty sheet of canvas held up by tree branches. The design is based on pictures of actual refugee dwellings in Sudan and across the border in Chad.

And the students also plan to help passers-by write letters and make phone calls to members of Congress, asking them to put Darfur on the national agenda. The village will stay up through Thursday, when a vigil to raise awareness about the ongoing crisis in Sudan is planned for the steps of Duke Chapel.

Anders Luco, a graduate student in the philosophy department, said his group, Justice, and other students hope to raise money during the vigil for nongovernmental agencies providing aid to the refugees. The crisis has not received as much attention as it should, he said, given the human hardship involved.

"It's the single most dire humanitarian crisis on Earth right now," he said.

The students building the mock village said they hope it will educate students, but they added that it also would be worth the effort if it only sparked a few thoughts about the suffering in central Africa.

Political causes can get lost among all the others on a college campus, so the students have to do something dramatic to get attention, the organizers said.

"Part of it is the spectacle of it," said Vijay Brihmadesam, a sophomore involved in the project.
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Note, MICHAEL PETROCELLI, the author of above report in The Herald-Sun, can be emailed at mpetrocelli@heraldsun.com. After posting this, I shall send him a link to the above.

Wouldn't it be great to see the mock village idea catch on at every campus across the world? A few scraps and twigs, and some energy and effort, are all that's needed to pitch up a village and grab the world's attention. Warm thanks to Mr Petrocelli for publicising this great initiative by the American students. It's a brilliant idea. Hope we get to hear more. They ought to be televised, across the world.

Here in England on BBC TV, there is a long running (well over 40 years) TV programme called Blue Peter that so many Brits grew up with, it's become a cult. Hugely popular with youngsters and parents, Blue Peter is an educational e-zine for teenagers that broadcasts serious news on world events and politics - and features all sorts of creative projects using scraps, empty washing up liquid bottles, drinking straws, bottle tops etc.

Maybe people like Michael Petrocelli can get TV stations interested in the students who could explain their Darfur project on TV (and radio) programmes like Blue Peter. More mainstream media and TV coverage is needed. We get just a minute or two on one news station, every few days - sometimes not for a week or two.

A previous post here dated November 11 linked to a BBC report re British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's shock at seeing BBC footage showing Sudan's police attacking a refugee camp in Darfur. You can view the video by clicking into a box in the top right hand corner of the report. Unfortunately, I'm using a PowerBook G4 and it wouldn't play for me.

Anyone can spread the word and get the video beamed around the world by linking to the BBC report in their weblog or website and pointing it out to readers. Please spread the word. Thank you. The UN Security Council meeting is next week, we need to get as much publicity on Darfur as possible. Jack Straw sent word out in the press: the pressure needs to be piled high on Khartoum. If we can put pressure on the Security Council - they might feel the pressure piling on them to do something.
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GERMANY TO SEND AIRLIFT PLANES TO SUDAN

Some news reports say there are now 700 troops (probably including observers and monitors) in Darfur. The three US transport planes that airlifted AU soldiers into Darfur are now back in Germany.

The following report from Berlin (via expatica.com) November 11, explains how 3,000 AU soldiers - expected in Darfur by the end of this month - will get there:

The German government will seek parliamentary approval to send transport planes to Sudan to airlift African Union peacekeepers serving in the country, Defence Minister Peter Struck said on Thursday.

Struck told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa that a parliamentary green light was needed because "danger to German soldiers cannot be ruled out."

The African Union (AU) has asked for European Union aid in deploying some 3,000 peacekeepers in Sudan's troubled Darfur region.

Struck said he expected German Luftwaffe C160 Transall transport jets to be flying missions in Darfur later this year.
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Note, Later this year? Hello. What about this month? Like, today? If you've followed Darfur closely these past six months, you may have noticed nothing much new has been put on the table since April and May when the death toll for Darfur was reportedly 10,000. Thousands of UN peacekeepers were planned for Sudan anyway - to enter by the end of Sept/Dec 2004 to monitor the ceasefires agreements after the long hoped for signing of the north-south peace accords.

Obviously, Kofi Annan has known this all along. Everyone on all sides (GoS, rebels, UN) have been delaying, biding their time and coasting along at everyone's expense with talk, sulks and more talk.

The UN is as good at delaying tactics as Khartoum and the rebels are. Meanwhile ... 10,000 Sudanese die every four weeks waiting for food, medicine and security forces who won't rape, attack, kidnap, bomb and kill them or force them to flee by burning down their homes and bulldozing their refuges. Who knows for sure if this is all to do with Khartoum 'clearing' their land for oil and drilling operations?
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BRITAIN MAY DEPLOY TROOPS TO QUELL FIGHTING IN DARFUR

Here we go again. Deja vu. Round two. Repeat of last crunch-time meeting of UN Security Council. Drums are starting to beat again, turning the pressure on Khartoum. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said pressure must be piled on Khartoum.

Note the below copy of a November 10 report in The Guardian UK. Best thing about reports such as this is, given our history, Khartoum can't help but take any information mentioning British troops, seriously. Peace in Sudan 'by January' is the ultimatum Tony Blair personally delivered to Khartoum.

"Britain could be asked to contribute troops to a 10,000-strong UN peacekeeping force for Sudan under a draft resolution being discussed in the security council, government officials in London indicated yesterday:

"The proposal for a UN force is part of a British package of incentives designed to gain Sudan's agreement to a comprehensive settlement of the conflict in Darfur, in western Sudan.

The UN says fighting in Darfur has claimed the lives of 70,000 people since March. A further 1.5 million people have fled their homes as a result of the violence pitting militias, known as Janjaweed, against two rebel groups, the Sudanese Liberation Army and the Justice and Equality Movement.

The security council passed two resolutions this year in an attempt to halt the conflict, threatening the Khartoum government with sanctions if it failed to rein in the Janjaweed. But recent reports have suggested the situation is deteriorating.

Speaking at the Foreign Office, Chris Mullin, the minister responsible for Africa, said Khartoum had demonstrated "reasonable cooperation" with international efforts to stem the Darfur fighting but it was "still not a very good situation".

Asked whether Britain would send troops to Sudan as part of the proposed UN force, as Tony Blair appeared to suggest earlier this year, Mr Mullin declined to rule it out saying it was "premature" to comment at this time.

Britain's ambassador to the UN, Sir Emyr Jones Parry, said the UN resolution, drafted by Britain, was under discussion and would be presented to an extraordinary security council meeting to be held in Nairobi on November 18-19.

The meeting, convened in Kenya at the request of the US, would focus on Darfur and the long-running talks between Khartoum and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, he said.

"The draft resolution is the carrot," Sir Emyr said.

"We are saying that if you [the Sudanese government] get your act together to get a stable state and live together, then this is what we can contribute: a major peacekeeping operation by the UN, humanitarian relief, law and order, help with infrastructure and establishing the rule of law and democratic structures."

He said the resolution, if agreed, would support addi-tional deployments of African Union troops, with monitoring duties as now but possibly as peacekeepers with wider powers. And it could dangle the prospect of an international aid donors' conference for Sudan.

The aim was to show Sudan's leaders that "the international community will stand by Sudan but only if it behaves", he said. He said the possibility of sanctions remained if Khartoum failed to reach a settlement.

"Sanctions are held as a latent threat," he said, poised over the heads of both the government and the rebels. He added any punitive measures would be "smart sanctions", targeting financial assets and the foreign travel of officials, rather than ordinary Sudanese.

He appeared to rule out curbs on Sudan's oil exports, which would almost certainly be opposed in the security council by China, one of Sudan's biggest customers.

Britain's special representative for Sudan, Alastair McPhail, said peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria, over Darfur were making progress, with agreement reached in principle on humanitarian and security protocols.

It was also hoped that the Nairobi meeting would be a catalyst for a peace accord in the south, he said.

The latest British proposals to break the impasse over Darfur came at a critical moment. UN World Food Programme officials in the region said yesterday that violence in the past month had deprived 175,000 people of emergency food supplies and driven 150,000 people from their homes.

The International Red Cross said last month that villages throughout Darfur faced "an unprecedented food crisis" that was worse than the famines of the 1980."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sudan/story/0,14658,1347485,00.html
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BRITISH LIBERAL MP TOM BRAKE HOLDS SUDANESE AMBASSADOR TO ACCOUNT OVER DARFUR

10/11/2004 Tom Brake MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow  International Development Secretary, is today meeting with the Sudanese Ambassador to the UK HE Dr Hassan Abdin. Commenting, Mr Brake said:

“As the humanitarian and security situation continues to deteriorate, the Sudanese government continues to give questionable assurances on Darfur.  The government is failing to control and disarm the Janjaweed militia and security remains an illusion for the people of Darfur.  I am seeking the Ambassador's response to reports that Khartoum is losing control of the region and that Darfur is descending into anarchy.

"Sudan's oil-hungry friends on the Security Council should not help Sudan escape the threat of UN sanctions.  Sudan must make good its promises on Darfur and comply with UN resolutions and co-operate with the African Union mission."

“The Sudanese government must halt violations of international humanitarian law and it must re-start peace talks.”
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Note, Jim has written an excellent short summary on Darfur that puts the whole hellish story in a nutshell:

"It's not that complicated: a genocide in Darfur, by proxies of the government of Sudan, in order to suppress an insurgency and intimidate people in other regions of the country."

The 11th day of the 11th month at the 11th hour, let us remember

NEVER AGAIN

[Thanks to boo for the Poppy image]

PETITION TO ASK KOFI ANNAN TO RESIGN AFTER HIS FAILURE OVER DARFUR SUDAN - Dear President Bush - China's Africa policy, oil, and Darfur Sudan

Terrible news. Darfur is sliding into a state of anarchy and emergency. Government of Sudan forces are out of control. It's taken up until a few weeks ago for 500 African Union soldiers to be on the ground in Darfur, despite months of negotiations and promises of another 3,000 several weeks ago.

The AU soldiers have to act as observers and watch refugee camps being bulldozed by government forces. A few days ago Government of Sudan forces attacked innocent civilians, threw tear gas into refugee camps, took refugees and drove away with them in vehicles against their will - and shot at a BBC reporter ... I'm lost for words ... and cannot repeat what is happening. Please read previous posts, and the most recent ones on the front page at Passion of the Present. Here are links to today's posts:

(1) HERE'S CALLING FOR THE RESIGNATION OF KOFI ANNAN (my post)

(2) Petition to ask Kofi Annan to resign, after his failure to stop the genocide in Darfur Sudan (Jim's)

(3) Petition to UN Security Council asking Kofi Annan to resign, after his failure to stop the genocide in Darfur Sudan (my post)

(4) Dear President Bush (another great post by Jim)

(5) China's Africa policy, oil, and Darfur Sudan (Jim - great links, thanks)

Note, Nick's buddy, Dr Jonathan Spector, who is recently back home in Boston after working with MSF (Doctors Without Borders) in Darfur - is, at long last, featured in a post at the Passsion (authored by Jim or his wife, I think) Don't lose hope for the children of Darfur Sudan. Seems there has been difficulty getting the photos online. Be sure to click on the photo (sorry it is too large for flickr to size here) of Jonathan's screen.

BBC has concrete evidence - Straw says UN Security Council wanted to slacken their efforts in Sudan

More pressure must be piled on the Sudanese government after new evidence showed security forces storming a Darfur refugee camp, says British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. Responding to a BBC film which also showed civilians driven away by officials, the foreign secretary said he found the footage "very shocking".

Jack Straw said he hoped the "concrete evidence" would be broadcast in the capitals of Security Council members, "who frankly have thought that it is time to slacken our efforts in Sudan, rather than increase the pressure".

NUMBER OF DARFUR VICTIMS: 2 MILLION AND COUNTING

U.N. diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said questions have already been raised about the AU force's ability to prevent attacks and the possible need for U.N. troops to be sent to Darfur as well.

Darfur is heading for total anarchy and the United Nations would be blamed if the Security Council did not take action, a senior U.N. official warned.

Jan Pronk, U.N.' s special envoy to Sudan told the Security Council that Darfur is sliding into anarchy as government and rebel forces battle over control of the territory the size of France (or the State of Texas).

He said that U.S.-supported plans to send 3,300 Africans soldiers to halt the violence in Darfur are inadequate and that more than twice that number are needed to restore calm.

Russia's U.N. Ambassador Andrey Denisov, when asked about the possibility of deploying non-AU troops, said "I don't see it." He called the 3,700-strong AU force for Darfur "a good contingent".



An aerial view of an abandoned village in Darfur

BBC eyewitness to terror in Darfur

The BBC's Fergal Keane witnesses an assault by Sudan's security forces on a refugee camp in the troubled region of Darfur.

Here below is a copy of his report, just in from Darfur.

The first police action at El-Geer refugee camp near Nyala began soon after midnight.

I saw at least four jeep-loads of police driving over the flimsy shacks erected by displaced people.

Later they returned and began to beat and tear-gas the frightened crowd.

I saw one of the community leaders being thrown to the ground and attacked by several policemen.

The police launched tear-gas grenades into a compound where women and children were sheltering.

Police then entered and forced them to flee.

Relocation

A police commander at the scene told me he was under orders to move the people to a new camp several kilometres away.

Forcible relocation is a grave breach of international humanitarian law, but the internal community is powerless here.

The police showed open contempt for United Nations officials when they arrived, firing tear-gas grenades and driving aggressively around the camp.

African Union (AU) peacekeepers at the camp said they did not have power or mandate to intervene.

More police have now arrived to reinforce the earlier contingent.

The UN representatives pulled out of the camp for security reasons.

All of this took place on a day when the UN representative in Sudan, Mr Jan Pronk, was due to visit the camp to talk with local officials. Government officials in this area knew this.

Provocation

For the UN and African Union, this assault on El-Geer camp is a calculated affront.

The police staged two assaults on displaced people, and wouldn't desist from bulldozing their camp, despite the presence of representatives of the UN, AU and international aid agencies.

At one stage a plastic bullet was fired at a BBC cameraman standing next to a UN vehicle.

The BBC has also confirmed that tear gas was fired at people, mostly women and children, queuing at a nearby medical clinic.

We witnessed harrowing scenes.

One woman was crying hysterically because her baby son had been lost in the panic. She later found him.

A number of men and women were also arrested.

Bewilderment

The displaced people here are vulnerable and defenceless, and they felt real terror.

All the people here I have spoken to were driven out of their own villages by the pro-government Janjaweed militia and have witnessed rape and murder.

It is really hard to convey what it is like, when in the dark hours of the early morning, jeeps come in with searchlights, knowing that these people have absolutely no protection.

I've been covering Africa for 21 years and I thought I'd seen everything, but to watch the officials and the police of a state like Sudan - which has just signed a peace agreement - demolishing people's shacks under the eyes of international observer and breaching international law, is quite extraordinary and unique.

The population is terrorised and bewildered, with little faith in the power of the international community."

CALLING FOR THE RESIGNATION OF KOFI ANNAN

The latest report for the UN Security Council prepared by the UN's top envoy, Jan Pronk of The Netherlands, calls for nothing concrete.

The present UN and AU personnel in Darfur are standing by watching civilians being attacked without the power to protect and defend.

Government of Sudan is losing control of its security forces.

The Security Council will hold a formal meeting in Nairobi on November 18-19, only the fourth time it has done so outside UN headquarters in New York since 1952.

The meeting will concern the whole of Sudan and consist mainly of setting out timeframes and timetables - and provide more carrots but no sticks.

A few weeks ago I left word (yet again) at a British Member of Parliament's blog to suggest the UK ask China to send 80,000 special police to Darfur.

I emailed a copy to British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Yesterday, I left word at the blog of a high profile Conservative Member of Parliament.

My last post here on November 1st called for the resignation of Kofi Annan.

Seems the only way to get the UN to take action is to threaten its existence.

Does any reader here have the skills to put up an online petition calling for the resignation of Kofi Annan?

We'd have a week to get word of it to mainstream media.

The UN Security Council are meeting in Nairobi November 18-19, 2004.

Britain drafts UN resolution on Sudan peace accord

The government in Khartoum and the SPLM/A rebels in the south adjourned peace talks in October for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Darfur peace talks adjourn for 1 month after parties strike deal to end hostilities

Britain on Friday circulated a draft UN resolution pushing for a comprehensive peace accord in Sudan that the Security Council expects to adopt at a rare meeting in Africa November 18-19, only the fourth time it has done so outside UN headquarters in New York since 1952.

The draft promises generous development assistance to the warring parties if they make peace.



Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir shakes hands with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the presidential palace in Khartoum in Sudan, Oct 6, 2004.(AFP).

Darfur mass graves desecrated

08/11/2004 - Kabkabyia, Sudan - Unknown assailants desecrated several mass graves in the Darfur region of Sudan, an aid worker in Kabkabyia told Deutsche Presse-Agentur, dpa on Sunday.

The attackers removed the bodies from the graves, possibly in an attempt to conceal the traces of a massacre, said the aid worker who did not want to be named.

Members of the African Union's peacekeeping mission in the region (Amis) confirmed the destruction of the graves. A spokesperson said Amis was investigating the incident but had not yet found any clues. The number of bodies removed was also unknown, the spokesperson said.

The mass graves were created in early 2003, after Arab militias attacked and killed many residents of the village of Shoba. The survivors had hastily buried the victims in mass graves before fleeing further attacks.

"This is the first time that we hear about graves being desecrated in such a way," said the aid worker.

Meanwhile, another eight people were killed in the strife-torn area on Saturday, when rebels of the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) attacked a fuel convoy of the Sudanese military.

The Sudanese subsequently sent a military plane into the area.

Rebels have frequently attacked government convoys in recent weeks in order to replenish their own supplies. - Sapa-dpa

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_1617343,00.html

U.N. team in Sudan to investigate genocide reports

EL FASHER, Sudan, Nov 8 (Reuters) - A U.N. team has arrived in Sudan to investigate whether genocide has occurred in Darfur.

George Somerwill, a U.N. spokesman in Sudan, told Reuters the international commission of inquiry arrived late on Sunday and would travel to Darfur in the west of Sudan on Wednesday. He said they were due to return to the capital Khartoum on Nov. 20.

"It is to begin its investigation of reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Darfur by all parties, including to determine whether or not acts of genocide have occurred and to identify the perpetrators of such violations," he said of the team's mandate.

Somerwill did not give details of the make-up of the team. In October U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan named a five-member panel led by Italian judge Antonio Cassese to investigate whether genocide has taken place in Darfur. The panel was created at the request of the U.N. Security Council.

Cassese was the first president of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, a court based in The Hague that is looking into suspected war crimes in the Balkans including during Bosnia's 1992-1995 war.

Two U.N. human rights watchdogs told the U.N. Security Council in September that war crimes had probably occurred on a "large and systematic scale" in Darfur.

U.K.'s Blair Says Sudan Failing to Make Progress on Peace Plan

Nov. 8 (Bloomberg) -- U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair said Sudan is failing to make progress bringing peace to the Darfur region, raising the chances of United Nations sanctions against the oil-rich nation.

"It is a very difficult and very delicate situation,'' Blair told Parliament in London. ``If anything, it has gotten worse in the last few weeks. If we do not get obedience and compliance in the next few weeks we will have to return to the UN Security Council.''

Sanctions would threaten Sudan's ability to sell oil on the international markets, which accounts for 75 percent of the nation's export earnings. Sudan started exports in 1999 and plans to boost production to 500,000 barrels a day by the end of next year from 345,000 barrels a day in June.

Last month, Blair traveled to the Sudanese capital of Khartoum for talks with Bashir, winning a commitment from the government to allow African Union troops into Darfur and to increase protection for Western aid workers in the region.

Peace Talks

African Union officials have yet to win Sudan's agreement on a security agreement outlining how and where troops could act in the region, Agence France-Presse reported today, citing delegates to peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria.

Blair said his agreement with Bashir required progress "by the end of the year.'' If that process fails, Blair said he will seek some sort of action from the UN Security Council, which could reprimand Sudan or levy economic or diplomatic sanctions.

Economic sanctions would hurt Chinese and Indian companies most, since the U.S. banned trade with Sudan in 1997. In 2002, the U.S. further tightened its sanctions, barring Americans from doing business with the Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Co., a group that taps Sudanese crude and ships it to overseas customers.

Western Companies

Except for Sweden's Lundin Petroleum AB, Western oil companies have pulled out of Sudan as violence flared between government and rebel troops in 1983. Chevron Corp. explored in the region from the 1960s to 1985.

Talisman Energy Inc. of Canada sold out in 2003, as did OMV AG of Austria. Total SA of France suspended work in Sudan but retains rights to drill, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

China National United, or Chinaoil, and China National Chemicals, known as Sinochem, were awarded contracts in August to buy half of the Sudanese Nile Blend crude oil for sale in the fourth quarter.

Those companies, controlled by the Chinese government, also have stakes in drilling projects in Sudan and in a pipeline that exports most of the nation's crude. Oil & Natural Gas Corp. of New Delhi works in Sudan.

Sudan also needs outside help to expand petroleum refineries at Port Sudan on the Red Sea and Khartoum in the center of the nation. Those plants, with a combined capacity of 72,000 barrels a day, produce gasoline for cars and butane for cooking. The government wants each plant to produce 100,000 barrels a day.

With a population of 39 million, Sudan has an annual gross domestic product of about $15.6 billion and external debts of $21 billion. Britain allocated 62.5 million pounds ($112 million) of aid for Sudan this year.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=adXqgi0SaJ08&refer=uk

U.N. envoy Jan Pronk says more troops needed in Darfur

UNITED NATIONS -- The U.N.' s special envoy to Sudan told the Security Council on Thursday that Darfur is sliding into anarchy as government and rebel forces battle over control of the territory. The U.N. official, Jan Pronk of the Netherlands, said that U.S.-supported plans to send 3,300 Africans soldiers to halt the violence in Darfur are inadequate and that more than twice that number are needed to restore calm.

http://www.kansas.com/mld/eagle/news/nation/10102856.htm

U.S.Airmen return from Darfur mission

11/5/2004 - RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFPN) -- Two C-130 Hercules and about 100 Airmen returned here Nov. 5 after completing a two-week airlift mission moving African Union troops into the Darfur region of Sudan.

During the mission, the Airmen moved 47 Nigerian and 238 Rwandan soldiers, and more than 25,000 pounds of cargo. The last mission was flown Nov. 3.

The mission began Oct. 21 when an advance team of about 30 Airmen arrived at Kigali International Airport, Rwanda, to set up the operations. Airmen on the team represented various specialties such as logistics, contracting, airfield management, security forces and communications. The majority of the Airmen deployed from here and Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England.

About 90 more Airmen deployed from here Oct. 22 to begin the mission.

http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123009111

Sudan belatedly tries to sharpen its act

By Alice Thomson (Filed: 05/11/2004) Telegraph UK:

We were wandering around the souk in Khartoum late at night - dodging the boys selling plastic AK-47s and looking at the camel saddles - when the electricity went. The market was plunged into darkness, and suddenly a hand grabbed my elbow. Anywhere else in the world, particularly in any other fundamentalist Muslim country, I would have been frightened. But in northern Sudan the people are incredibly hospitable to "Khawaja" - Westerners. The man was merely guiding me to the pavement.

Walking by the Nile in the early morning, the washerwomen wave. One man asked if I was Russian. When I explained that I was English, he laughed as he told me that my country had done bad things, going back to Kitchener. In the refugee camps and the homes I visited for The Daily Telegraph Christmas Appeal, everyone offered tea and fizzy drinks.

But they are nervous. In the camps, the tribal elders listen to the BBC Arabic service. In Khartoum, the news was switched off only when Manchester City played Norwich. The presidential election is as crucial to the future of the Sudanese as to Seattle.

"Bush has won," said one man, cradling his head in his hands. Hayder Ahmed is a psychologist. He was imprisoned and tortured by the Sudanese government for refusing to join the army at university. But he says he would prefer any Sudanese government to George W Bush.

"Emotionally, we were for Kerry even though we didn't understand what he stood for," he said.

"After Afghanistan and Iraq, Bush could go for us next," said his friend, Imad Musa. "It's either us, Iran or Syria. He can do what he wants now he has won such a big victory."

In northern Sudan, this is their fear - that they will become the next Iraq, just as their lot seems to be improving. They know the world's attention has swung to the largest country in Africa. In the past three months, they have received visits from Hilary Benn, Colin Powell, Jack Straw, Kofi Annan and Tony Blair. They are becoming used to the motorcades and cameras.

The "Western elders" all lectured them on the atrocities being perpetrated in Darfur. Hilary Benn, the International Development Secretary, called the 1.5 million refugees, and the reports of rape and looting, "unacceptable". Colin Powell made it clear that the Janjaweed irregulars terrifying Darfur had to be bought under control. Kofi Annan begged for peace. And you know, said Mr Blair, it really would be better if the Khartoum regime sorted itself out and held independent elections. Hanging over their words was the threat: if you don't get your act together, you could be next.

In many ways, Sudan is in dire straits, particularly in southern Darfur, where villages continue to be torched by the Janjaweed. But the situation in the rest of the country is improving. In the north, the imams are relaxing their grip. Women walk with their heads uncovered. At an orphanage I visited two years ago, babies found on the streets by the police were often left to die; single mothers were stoned. Now the same police beam as they rush the babies to the doctors.

It is no longer illegal to talk negatively about the regime. As a result, many I met were openly outraged by corruption. Even the ministers are trying belatedly to sharpen up their act. "Iraq has been a lesson to us all," said one Sudanese minister, who didn't want to be named.

"If Americans troops arrive, our country will suffer for another 40 years."

In the Darfur refugee camps, foreign intervention is welcome. The area is suffering from a crippling famine and US Aid, the EU and Britain have flown in enough food to feed one million people for the next six months. The refugees no longer trust their own government, whom they believe armed the nomadic Janjaweed against the farmers.

But everyone else I met wanted to keep the West out. "They are what you call a sticking plaster with their aid, and for that we are very grateful. But what we need is more African Union troops; at present, we only have 3,000 of them to keep the peace," said one Sudanese director of an aid agency. "This continent needs to prove we can change on our own."

Most insist that anything that can be seen as occupation will play into the hands of foreign

fundamentalists. "Arabs, Africans, Christians, Muslims: we will be obliged to take up arms against the West."

Mr Blair has promised that Africa is his top priority. He has been saying that since his party conference speech three years ago. Now he seems to mean it. When Britain takes over the presidency of both the G8 and the European Union next year, Africa will be the main topic.

Sudan is an obvious starting point. So what do the Sudanese think Mr Bush and Mr Blair should do? The answer on the streets is that they should put more pressure on those involved in the peace agreements. Then ensure that Khartoum sticks to its promise of independent elections.

Easier said than done. Britain, when it is not shaking Robert Mugabe's hand, has been pushing for regime change in Zimbabwe for years. Sanctions didn't work in toppling Saddam.

What's different about Sudan? "Everyone has had enough of war. We want to be normal. Every family has lost at least one member," said a paediatrician who fled the south 20 years ago.

The war in Iraq has been both a curse and a blessing to Sudan. It has meant they no longer like America, in the way they liked the America of Ronald Reagan, who gave them aid when they were starving in the 1980s.

But it has also shown everyone - from ministers to imams to rebels - that, if they don't sort out their own affairs, they could become a country occupied by both Western troops and foreign fundamentalists.

http://www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2004/11/05/do0502.xml&

Darfur crisis now affects two million, UN reports

Copy of report:

THE crisis in Darfur is now affecting at least two million people as violence and insecurity in the war-torn region of Sudan intensify, the United Nations warned last night.

Kofi Annan, the UN general secretary, accused the Sudanese government and rebels of trying to take more territory in Darfur, and spoke of strong indications that war crimes have been committed in the region.

The UN has demanded that Khartoum take action to end the violence, disarm the government-backed Janjaweed militias blamed for many attacks and punish the perpetrators.

The latest evidence of continued fighting in Darfur is contained in a report which went before the UN Security Council last night.

The report, written by Jan Pronk, the senior UN envoy to Sudan, recommends council members take "prompt action" to get the government and rebels to comply with UN resolutions and urges countries with influence to exert pressure on the parties to negotiate a peace deal.

According to copies of the report circulated ahead of publication, the estimate of people in Darfur affected by the conflict rose during September from 1.8 million to 2 million, an upward trend expected to continue until the end of the year.

The increase stems mainly from the growing number of internally displaced people who have fled their homes because of insecurity, now 1.6 million, the report said. A further 400,000 people affected by the conflict require humanitarian assistance.

The report said various sources had reported a new rebel group, the National Movement for Reformation and Development, has attacked government troops and threatened African Union troops deployed to help end the violence.

Until the government starts taking more than "pinprick" action against the perpetrators, the report warned, no displaced people will dare return home and no group will agree to disarm.

"Without an end to impunity, banditry goes from strength to strength, menacing the population and obstructing the delivery of aid to desperate people in isolated areas," the report said.

"There are strong indications that war crimes and crimes against humanity have occurred in Darfur on a large and systematic scale."

An international commission appointed by Mr Annan has three months to study human rights violations and determine whether genocide has occurred in Darfur.

Pronk's latest report for UNSC demands no concrete measures

Editorial: The Heart Of Darkness - 5 November 2004 - copy of report and other notes:

 The report by Jan Pronk, the United Nations’ envoy to Darfur, makes grim reading, indeed. Since the UN became involved in Darfur the number of refugees has doubled to almost two million. And more are coming in every day. Fleeing refuges, mostly women and children, have been slaughtered at a rate of 2,000 a day.

Pronk uses strong language for a diplomat. He reports that war crimes are being committed “on a large and systematic scale”, and that both the Khartoum authorities and the rebel militias are engaged in grabbing as much territory as they can even if that means destroying the lives of numerous people.

Although Pronk minces no words, his report is ultimately disappointing because he demands no concrete measures to cope with a situation that he labels as desperate. All he does is call for “urgent action” and more money. Writing a check for $150 million as Pronk demands, of course, is not hard for the major powers. What is harder is to decide what action to take on the ground.

The United Nations, still sulking over the toppling of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, is clearly reluctant to recommend military action even under its own flag. This deliberate and rather pompous exclusion of all forms of military action cannot but weaken the UN’s position in Sudan. The reason is not hard to divine. Why should the rival military gangs, involved in this genocidal struggle, stop their activities if they know that they can do so with impunity?

The tragedy in Darfur has exposed the dangers of the entire do-good industry of which the United Nations’ is the center. This industry provides food, medical aid and shelter in conflict situations. By doing so it enables the parties to the conflict to use all their resources for war rather than meeting the basic demands that the good-industry is meeting. In Darfur the UN is feeding villagers who will be killed tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. But it is also, indirectly, feeding the killers. The UN builds the tent cities that receive villagers driven out of their homes, but also attract others who simply wish to flee poverty.

That the UN has decided to speak out on Darfur, rather than remain silent as it did during the Rwandan genocide, is welcome. But speaking out is not enough. Passing yet another Security Council resolution would not save a single life in Darfur. Another “serious warning” from Kofi Annan is unlikely to put the fear of God in the Janjaweed killers or their manipulators.

Later this month, the Kenyan capital Nairobi will host a peace conference on Sudan. The Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan people’s Liberation Army (SPLA) are scheduled to finalize a peace accord brokered by the United States after months of negotiations. The peace accord will enable the Sudanese government to divert some of its resources from fighting an endless war in the south to other pursuits. By all indications Khartoum intends to use those resources for a more aggressive policy in Darfur. And that is bad news for the people of Darfur.
- - -

Pronk said Arab tribes drove their neighbors off their land two years ago to get more space for themselves and their cattle in an act of "pure ethnic cleansing." But now it was payback time, with rebels stealing cattle and blocking camel tracks "leading to a survival of the fittest and death for the weakest."

Pronk said the government no longer fully controlled the militias, with lines between the military, militia and police blurred. And he said the rebels were split, fighting each other for private gain and taking no responsibility for damages and loss of life as they gained territory. "We may soon find Darfur is ruled by warlords," Pronk said.

Pronk said the council should speak with "one voice" when its goes to Nairobi in an effort to seal an agreement between the government and rebel groups in the south, which might serve as a model for Darfur as well as insist on a timetable for talks being held on the Darfur crisis.

Bono, McCartney join Band Aid 20 lineup

Friday, November 5, 2004 LONDON - Paul McCartney, U2 frontman Bono, Robbie Williams and Dido are among the performers lined up for the new recording of the all-star Band Aid charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas."

The tune, which will be credited to Band Aid 20 in acknowledgement of the anniversary of the 1984 release, will be issued November 29 in the UK on Mercury/Universal.

Others on board include Snow Patrol and Natasha Bedingfield. McCartney will play bass on the track and Bono will reprise one of the most famous lines in the original lyric: "Well tonight, thank God it's them instead of you."

McCartney, Williams and Dido are understood to be recording their parts separately from the November 14 session at London's Air Studios; Williams recorded the whole track in Los Angeles on Monday.

British artist Damien Hirst will design the sleeve artwork for the release, which will raise money for the Band Aid Trust's famine relief in Africa, specifically in the blighted Darfur region of Sudan.

Travis' Fran Healy will play guitar on the recording. "It's dead exciting," he told Billboard.com. "When it was first recorded, I was 11 and I went everywhere looking for it and I couldn't find it, and now we're going to do the follow-up to it. It's going to be great, McCartney's doing it, Bono's going to sing his own line, [and] we're going to help out with some music, with Nigel [Godrich, who'll produce the single]. I really wanted to get Franz Ferdinand involved in it -- I think they're going to do it, although I haven't spoken to [executive producer] Midge Ure for about a week now."

"Midge did a thumbnail sketch of the original with new music on it," Healy continued. "He's got the Darkness doing the guitars at the end, and he's changed the arrangement of it. He shipped that over to L.A. where Nigel was working with McCartney. If it turns out absolutely s---, it does not matter. What I will say is you've got to buy the record because it's the only record that's going to save lives this side of Christmas, and you can't ask for more than that."

Emergency Security Officer - Save the Children UK - South Darfur, Sudan

9 months (possible extension to 12 months), Unaccompanied Status
£ 22,744 plus competitive benefits package

Due to the urgent nature of this position, applications will be reviewed as received and prior to the closing date stated below

SC UK has worked in Sudan - both North and South - since the 1950s. The programme seeks a balance between emergency and long-term development and between work with the displaced and host communities.

Due to the current emergency in Darfur, SC UK Sudan programme is expanding its programme in South Darfur, which is a fast changing security environment, characterised by predictable and unpredictable threats. Therefore, the need has arisen for an experienced Security Officer to provide effective security management. Your key areas of responsibility will include:

 Supporting the Programme and Area Managers to implement SCUK Sudan Security Guidelines and modifying and adjusting them according to the local security situation.

 Developing site specific security and evacuation plans.

 Conducting threat/risk assessments and compiling reports on security assessments of SCUK sites.

 Co-ordinating and liasing on SCUK security matters with all actors in the region.

 Identifying information sources and creating an information gathering network.

 Providing security training for SCUK staff throughout South Darfur.

 Supervising country wide communication systems consisting of HR, VHF, satellite and data systems and train staff on the use this equipment and radio protocols.

To fulfil this challenging role you will have substantial experience in overseas humanitarian security in insecure or hostile environments.

You will be able to demonstrate your technical competence in field based communication systems and be experienced in training staff in the use of systems and also on security and safety related subjects.

You will have solid knowledge and understanding of organisational security issues, threat/risk assessment, security management and security awareness in an insecure environment.

Experience of having worked in an area of conflict, together with a willingness to travel within Sudan is essential.

Type of work: Contract. Location: South Darfur, Sudan. Closing date: 19.11.2004. Date job appeared on the site:05.11.2004

To apply: Recruitment and selection procedures and checks reflect our commitment to the protection of children from abuse. Save the Children aims to be an equal opportunities employer.

Please apply online to help reduce our costs: www.savethechildren.org.uk/jobs
Alternatively, if you have problems applying on line please send your c.v. and covering letter to jobs eafrica@savethechildren.org.uk quoting Ref. EA 2507
Closing date: 19th November 2004

http://www.oneworld.net/job/view/10437

Tensions Rise in Sudan As Rebels And Government Begin to Lose Control, UN Says

UN News Service (New York) November 4, 2004 - copy of report:

With both Sudan's government and its rebels losing control of their fighting forces in troubled Darfur, warlords may take over unless an international peacekeeping force is fully deployed, negotiations are speeded up and political leaders are held accountable for their actions, the United Nations envoy for Sudan said today.

"The government does not control its own forces fully," Special Representative Jan Pronk told the Security Council in a briefing on Secretary-General Kofi Annan's monthly report on the situation in the war-torn region. "It co-opted paramilitary forces and now it cannot count on their obedience The border lines between the military, the paramilitary and the police are being blurred."

Within the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) "there is a leadership crisis," Mr. Pronk said. "There are splits. Some commanders provoke their adversaries by stealing, hijacking and killing, some seem to have begun acting for their own private gain."

The rebels now control so much of the territory that they must take responsibility for the people there and become political leaders, he said, "or they may turn to preying on the civilians in areas they control by force - and we may soon find Darfur is ruled by warlords."

Tensions have been rising since August and, as of November, fighting and provocation have become more widespread, threatening food production and putting the whole population at risk of becoming dependent on humanitarian aid, Mr. Pronk said.

"Governmental authorities are not able to exert a moderating influence, or they respond with untimely and even counter-productive measures," he said.

At a news conference after his briefing, Mr. Pronk said the deployment of an adequate number of African Union (AU) troops was being delayed by bureaucracy, lack of funding and differing perceptions of the situation on the ground.

The planned Security Council meeting later this month in Nairobi, Kenya, could convince the parties that they are expected to negotiate in good faith and adopt a Declaration of Principles, a timeframe and detailed agenda for further political issues, he said.

The Secretary-General's report pointed out that despite slow political progress, "violence in Darfur is on the rise. New movements are threatening the peace in Kordofan, in the East and in Khartoum. There is reluctance at the negotiating table in Abuja (Nigeria), distrust, internal division, lack of capacity to negotiate and no sense of urgency."

In Darfur, the Sudanese Government's failure to end impunity has discouraged both disarmament of fighters and repatriation from refugee and internally displaced persons' (IDP) camps, as "banditry goes from strength to strength," it says.

The Government "must build on the very limited action it has taken so far and present a comprehensive and concrete programme for holding accountable those responsible for widespread and systematic violations over the past year or more," the report says.

After the briefing, Ambassador John C. Danforth of the United States, which holds the Council's rotating presidency for November, read a press statement in which the 15 members voiced their deep concern about the findings in Mr. Annan's report and the deterioration in the security and humanitarian situation confirmed in Mr. Pronk's briefing.

They condemned attacks on civilians, sexual violence, hostage-taking and other violations in Darfur "by all parties, including the Government of the Sudan, rebel groups and the Janjaweed militias," Ambassador Danforth said.

Concerned about the government's forced relocation of IDPs in Otash, Old Sharief and New Sharief, contrary to Council resolutions approved earlier this year, the Council called on the Sudanese Government once more to cease all forcible relocations, return those removed and allow relief workers immediate access to all internally displaced people's camps.

International Officials Look Into Relocation of Displaced People in Darfur

By Cathy Majtenyi - Nairobi - 4 November 2004:

An intergovernmental organization says it is looking into what it calls the forced relocation of displaced people in the war-torn Darfur region of western Sudan. The Sudanese government has denied any wrongdoing in the relocation.

The International Organization for Migration is investigating the circumstances under which several thousand residents of camps in Nyala, south Darfur were transferred to different locations by Sudanese troops earlier this week.

The International Organization for Migration, which works closely with the United Nations, wants to determine if the Sudanese government has been abiding by the terms of an earlier agreement on how to deal with internally displaced people in Darfur.

The head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Khartoum, Ramesh Rajasingham, explains.

"According to the agreement that we have with the government here that has been signed between the International Organization of Migration and the government of Sudan, the authorities have to inform IOM of any voluntary movement of IDPs so that IOM can then go and view their specific criteria that they have established to determine whether the IDPs have moved voluntarily or not," he said. "This did not take place."

Mr. Rajasingham said many displaced people reported that they were moved involuntarily. He said it is against international law for displaced people to be transferred to different locations against their will.

"We are also very concerned that the IDPs, who already suffered more than enough, are then put under increasing pressure not of their own will," he said. "They are traumatized and in addition to that they now have to go through this forced move."

The spokesman for Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mohamed Ahmed Abdel Ghassar, told VOA there was only one location where people were transferred out of.

He said the settlement was not a camp for internally displaced people set up by the government or the International Organization for Migration, but was actually a group of 154 squatter families who were living illegally on private land.

"Of course, the owners, the landlords of this land came and requested that this is their land and they have to get it back," he said. "And the authorities tried to convince them that they can be moved to another place, especially [since] the place where they have been was not good, it was not healthy, and they accepted."

Mr. Ghassar said the residents moved voluntarily, but when they got to the new location, they started rioting and were stopped by Sudanese security forces.

He said the Sudanese government is also investigating the situation.

http://www.voanews.com/english/2004-11-04-voa38.cfm

Government of Sudan and the international community have completely failed the people of Darfur

Despite promises, neither the international community nor the Government of Sudan has provided adequate assistance and security to the people in Darfur, concludes international relief organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in a report presented today.

Over a year after their escape from their villages and after countless promises from the Government of Sudan and world leaders, peoples lives are still daily under threat.

"So much talking, so much attention, but so little is changing on the ground with regards to security for civilians," said MSF emergency co-ordinator Ton Koene. "The world has to remind itself the violence and suffering has still not ended."

The MSF report shows the pervasiveness of the violence and appalling consequences of the atrocities committed against people in Darfur. Camps of refuge are anything but -- displaced Darfurians tell MSF that they are living under the guard of some of the same armed men that burned their villages and killed their families. They are too scared to go home and yet frightened to remain where they are. Even now, safety is an illusion for Darfurians.

In this, the Government of Sudan and the international community have completely failed them.

To redress the situation the people of Darfur must have expanded assistance in terms of quality and quantity delivery of aid wherever they have chosen to seek refuge freedom from the threat of violence, the fundamental cause of this crisis.
- - -

SOUTHERN SUDAN PEACE TALKS BREAK FOR ONE MONTH

While fresh fighting breaks out in Darfur, the Southern Sudan peace talks break for a month.

Peace talks to end Sudan's southern war are on hold until later this month, after the U.N. Security Council holds its regular meeting in Nairobi in a move to pressure both sides to sign a deal.

The Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the regional body that is chief mediator in the talks, today (Monday) said both sides agreed to shelve negotiations until November 26 when lower-level negotiators will return.

Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) rebel leader John Garang and Sudan's First Vice President Ali Osman Taha are then due to return on December 11 with the aim of finalising a pact to end Africa's longest-running civil war.
- - -

Note, reports say 10,000 refugees are dying every month. The death toll of 70,000 has remained static during past month which means by December, 30,000 more will have died, bringing the death toll to 100,000. (These are UN figures for past seven months only - the UN have no figures for the thirteen months prior to March 2004.)

Several months ago, USAID predicted a death toll of 300,000 by Christmas. Recent reports say a further 100,000 Darfurians may soon flee over the border into Chad, adding unimaginable strain to the 200,000 already there in camps. 85% of deaths in camps are due to malnutrition and disease.
Yesterday, 2,000 Sudanese were reported fleeing for shelter over the border into Uganda.

Sudan's rebel groups are using innocent civilians, and the UN Security Council, as pawns in their war. The rebels' continuing violence, and blocking of aid to 1.5 million hungry and defenceless men, women and children, makes them as evil, greedy and ruthless as the government of Sudan.

"Belated Birthday Greetings to the UN" - Rwanda in slow motion

Here is a must-read report for new visitors to this site, and regulars who may be in need of a refresher - along with the following post "Belated Birthday Greetings to the UN" by British blogger Eric:

The 24th of October was the UN's birthday. I would have posted something about it on the day, but I was far too busy baking a cake (chocolate cake, before you ask) to celebrate the outstanding success it has had in recent years in promoting "international peace and security," and "universal respect for and observance of human rights."

If you doubt the UN's ability to carry out this last task, then put you mind at rest. The enlightened attitudes at the UN mean that the Sudan can still hold a seat on the UN Commission on Human Rights. At least the Sudan government are well qualified to recognise human rights abuses:

TWENTY-TWO-year-old Fatima Ahmed speaks stoically about the events of that morning in August 2003 that have left her biding her time on a mat under a makeshift canopy in Touloum refugee camp, serving visitors heavily chlorinated water from relief rations.

It was early morning, she said, when the helicopter gunships and warplanes assaulted her village of Abu Gamra in northern Darfur. She recalled people playing dead during the airstrike to survive.

But that did not spare some of the Zaghawa villagers. The aerial attack was followed by the arrival of government soldiers in trucks and janjaweed on horses and camels.

They began killing children and adults indiscriminately, Ahmed said.

Her father and at least nine others in her family were among those killed. Other family members were captured. She does not know their fate.

The attack was not directed at rebels, Ahmed said. "The government and janjaweed know the location of the liberation army, but they attack the poor people in villages," she said.

Slice of chocolate cake anyone?

Thought not.

posted by Eric.
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Note to Jim and friends at passionofthepresent.org - After six months of blogging almost daily about Darfur, I stand by a post I wrote last April that questioned the tragedy in Darfur and put the spotlight on the UN, EU and aid agencies. I'd be supportive of any initiative that puts pressure on the aid agencies (to lobby for security) and calls for the resignation of Kofi Annan. - Ingrid in UK.

Eritrea mobilises more troops along Sudan common border: report

This sounds ominous. Sudan started moving its troops - thousands of them along a border a few months ago. 200 French troops are on the Chad-Sudan border. Strange reports come out about Eritrea ranging from Sudan attempting to assassinate the President of Eritrea - to the U.S. running training camps for the Sudan rebels to weaken the regime in Khartoum.

Note the report is by the pro-governmental Al-Anba daily newspaper, and the material is from the BBC Monitoring Service in England.

KHARTOUM, Oct 30, 2004 -- Sudan has obtained important reports about the deployment of some 400 troops by Eritrean authorities from Assab sea port of Eritrea into Sudanese territory.

The reports further said that 250 troops had at the same time been moved from Massawa sea port to the Sudanese border. The reports said the two military groups had joined others already stationed along the Sudanese border, raising their number to 5,900.

The reports said that alongside the deployed troops, seven helicopters have been made available
.
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Tension between Eritrea and Sudan heightens

October 22, 2004 report from Middle East online: Ismail expects Eritrea to launch attack on Sudan after Asmara uncovers Sudanese-backed plot to kill President.

Further reading at Eritrea Daily

Putin Bans Weapons Sales to Janjaweed, Unofficial Groups in Sudan

On October 25, 2004, Moscow News reported that Vladmir Putin has signed a decree banning the sale of all weapons to non-government bodies in Sudan, including the Janjaweed armed groups that have been accused by the international community of genocide in the southern province of Darfur.

The Russian president signed the document “On measures to implement UN Security Council resolution 1556 of 30 July 2004” on Monday, gauging fears his trade with the African state was fueling ethnic strife there by supplying weapons used to kill civilians.

Sudan was billed as Russia’s biggest arms client — since 2002, it has procured MiG-29 fighter-jets, Mi-24 attack helicopters and a range of weapons and munitions.

But Russian weapons sales to Sudan — which were labeled a “model in the use of Russian military platforms to quell an African insurgency” by Middle Eastern news agencies — have sparked concern that the weapons are being used by the Janjaweed in raids against civilians in Darfur to quell what Sudan has called an uprising, but what international groups are saying is genocide.

[via Patrick Hall at The Horn of Africa]

Pity Mr Putin did not extend his decree to include the Government of Sudan. Several months ago I posted something about GoS telling Minsk it had a whole load of spare cash to spend on new weaponary.

U.S. warns rebels to curb attacks in Darfur

The United States is increasingly worried about attacks by rebel groups in Darfur.

Charles Snyder, the U.S. special envoy for Sudan, said yesterday Sudan was making some efforts to respect the cease-fire and to curb the Janjaweed and that he was more worried that the rebel groups SLM and JEM were continuing to launch attacks.

"What I find more disturbing is that many of the incidents that are happening now are (as a result of) rebel action," he added. "The SLM and the JEM have been fairly provocative in their activities ... and we are actually warning them that their best behavior is required in this process as well."

Snyder said that his main objective at the Abuja talks was to get the April 8 Darfur cease-fire to hold, saying a political settlement was a longer term objective but less immediately pressing than the need to stop the violence.

"If the violence is still going on, the political discussion to some degree is pointless" he said, saying both sides might use attacks to influence the talks and simply produce more bloodshed.

Sudan rebels say fresh bombing raids on Darfur threaten peace talks

SLA and the JEM rebels said Sudanese government forces launched fresh bombing raids on areas of Darfur under its control. The raids were in and around the towns of Haskanit on Thursday and Al-Mahla on Friday. Both towns lie near rebel bases.

"If things continue like this, there is no way we are going to stay in Abuja to talk about peace," SLA spokesman said, threatening to counterattack government and Janjaweed forces.

Officials with the AU-backed Cease-fire Commission, in Sudan and Nigeria, said they had no knowledge of the attacks.

During the Darfur peace talks in Nigeria this past week, the Sudanese government and two Darfur rebel groups SLM and JEM each gave separate presentations outlining long-term political solutions to the conflict, but they did not interact.

The government proposed devolving more power to Darfur’s three states. The SLM called for a separation of religion and state.

Neither the government nor the Islamist JEM referred to the role of religion in their proposals.

Face-to-face talks expected late yesterday did not take place. Instead, rebel and government delegates held a series of separate discussions with AU mediators and Nigerian Foreign Minister, aimed at breaking deadlock over a hoped-for security accord.

Last night's discussions went on past midnight, but the mediators failed to get the parties to sign an accord.

Negotiations are expected to reconvene tomorrow.
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Mediators from the African union has proposed a security agreement project for both the two delegations of the government and the rebels who are holding a round of talks in Abuja, capital of Nigeria. One official in the African Union said that the two delegations will study the documents and will be meeting "after several days" to ratify it.

Egypt hosts an African ministerial meeting on Darfur

Egypt announced it will host a meeting on Darfur within the few coming days including the foreign ministers of countries that took part in Tripoli summit which was held two weeks ago which are Egypt, Chad, Libya and Sudan.

News reports in Cairo quoted the Egyptian foreign minister Ahmad Abu al-Gheit has asserted Egypt's rejection to imposing sanctions on Sudan and its support for the government of Khartoum.

Abu al-Gheit warned that continued pressure on Sudan will lead to dismantling this country and converting it into several states.
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Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Othman Ismael started a tour in the countries of the African Union to brief them on latest developments and explaining the official position of the government regarding the crisis.

Ethnic cleansing and genocide investigation: UN Commission due in Khartoum November 6, 2004

UN Commission are due in Khartoum next week to investigate allegations of ethnic cleansing and genocide in Darfur.

Justice Minister Ali Osman Yassin told Al Rai Al Aam newspaper that he was officially notified by the UN on Thursday that the commission would arrive on November 6.

A five-member UN panel has been created by Secretary General Kofi Annan to look into allegations of genocide and investigate reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Darfur.

The Sudanese minister of justice and attorney general Ali Muhammad Othman Yassin said that the UN committee will start its mission by convening a meeting with the Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, the minister of foreign affairs Mustafa Othman Ismael and the minister of the Interior Abdul Rahim Muhammad Hussein.

The Sudanese government announced it is ready to receive the committee and to give it all necessary facilitation and aid to carry out its mission in Darfu

The Sudanese government has said the U.N.'s death toll is hugely exaggerated, putting the toll at about 7,000.

Darfuris recall ending disputes at Ramadan banquets - Saudi Arabia launches iftar program for Darfur

Wouldn't it be great if all the warring parties in Sudan could settle down to their disputes peacefully at collective itfar banquets?

Many Darfuris have marked Ramadan this year recalling how the holy month acted as a chance for warring parties to settle down their disputes peacefully at collective iftar banquets.

Local inhabitants have waited for collective iftar banquets to break their daylong fast also creating a conductive atmosphere for ending hostilities in the turbulent western Sudanese region.

“Collective Iftar banquets make up the old tradition of defusing tribal tension at table, especially between shepherds and farmers (clashing over green pastures),” said Issa Jales, leader of the African Bergid tribes - the largest in Darfur.

Jales told IslamOnline.net how the 30 days of the holy month were exploited to bury the hatchet whatever complex it was, not to mention paying blood money for killing crimes to end a tribal feud that could have taken a long time to end.

“These iftar meeting had been always capped with sealing reconciliation deals, after which the two sides put their disputes behind their backs and went to Tarawih prayers altogether,” he added.

Jales said the house of the tribe chief has witnessed a buzz of activity by these meetings. He said ending disputes at Ramadan has become part of what he calls happy old days.

The tribe chief said the foreign interference into the situation in Darfur turned things more complex that tribal disputes could not be longer settled on an iftar meal.

He accused the Darfur rebels, emboldened by the foreign intervention into the crisis, of having a far-fetched complex agenda.

“Ramadan has given the hope for convincing rebels in Darfur to lay down weapons and sit for talks with the Khartoum government. Now things slipped out of control following the foreign intervention,” said Jales, a former security official for 35 years.

[Note, the report states "Darfur is known for having large potential reserves of oil and other natural resources."]
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Saudi Arabia launches iftar program for Darfur

Saudi Arabia has launched a project to provide iftar [breakfast] for the displaced population in camps in Darfur. A cargo plane left Riyadh on October 14 carrying 60,000 food baskets for this purpose.

Nice idea but what about the 200,000 Sudanese refugees sitting helplessly in camps in Chad? 10,000 a month are dying in camps. 1.5 million are reported as being displaced. Why is Saudi Arabia not more generous, does anybody know?

China plans to restructure Petro China - China signs $70 billion oil deal with Iran

China plans to restructure its biggest oil producer Petro China and its parent China National Petroleum Group (CNPC) in a bid to create an oil giant capable of competing on the global stage.

Chinese officials hope to raise fresh capital from foreign investment by beefing up PetroChina's international operations, a newspaper reported.

Petro China, whose shares are listed in both New York and Hong Kong, would buy CNPC's overseas assets for five billion dollars.

It will pick up production or exploration rights in Kazakhstan, Venezuela, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, Peru and Azerbaijan to add to its Indonesian production, it added.
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China signs $70 billion oil and LNG agreement with Iran

China has just signed a $70 billion oil and LNG agreement with Iran. Excerpt from today's Daily Star in Malaysia:

"State oil giant Sinopec Group has signed a $70 billion oil field development and liquefied natural gas agreement with Iran, China's biggest energy deal with the No. 2 OPEC producer, an Iranian official said Friday.

Sudan threatens HIV/AIDS tests on Nigerian troops in Darfur

The Sudanese government has been killing its people in Darfur for the past 20 months. At least 70,000 deaths have been reported since March. 10,000 refugees are dying each month.

Today, all of a sudden, it is overly concerned about safeguarding the health of the people of Darfur.

Sudan has given a contingent of Nigerian troops in Darfur until Saturday to produce certificates proving they are not infected with the HIV virus or undergo screening.

"The authorities will never be tolerant with regards to the safety of the people of the state," North Darfur Governor Osman Youssef Kibir was quoted as saying.

He was referring to a group of 47 soldiers who arrived in El-Fasher yesterday.

Health Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman said Monday that an AIDS-free policy would be applied to AU troops being deployed in the region.

He said the measure was purely precautionary and aimed at "safeguarding the health of the people of Darfur."

Those coming without internationally recognized health certificates would have to undergo medical tests on entering Sudan and before proceeding to Darfur, the minister added.

SUNA reported that, despite the warning, the Nigerian troops failed to bring the mandatory health certificates, saying that all their documents had been forwarded to AU headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

97 Rwandan troops to leave tomorrow for Darfur

The U.S. Air Force will fly Rwandan troops into Darfur tomorrow (Saturday), joining just-arrived Nigerian soldiers.

"We've got three C-130s going tomorrow, carrying 97 Rwandan troops and equipment and supplies," U.S. Air Force spokeswoman Capt. Heather Healy said today.

Up to 237 soldiers are expected to leave in the next three days, said Lt. Col Charles Karamba, a spokesman for the Rwandan Army.

On Aug. 15, roughly 155 Rwandans became the first foreign soldiers to arrive in Darfur.

The Nigerians expect to deploy another 350 soldiers over the next few weeks, bringing its total deployment to a battalion of 550.


Nigerian troops head to a U.S. C-130 for transport into the Darfur region of Sudan in Abuga, Nigeria, Thursday, Oct. 28, 2004.

The C-130s will continue to airlift additional forces into the region over the next two weeks.

“Airlift plays a small, but vital role, and we are proud and honored to help the (African Union) as they embark to solve this crisis,” said Col. Robert Baine, 322nd Air Expeditionary Group commander.

The group’s mission is limited to providing airlift support. U.S. troops will not be on the ground in Sudan, said Capt. Heather Healy, 322nd AEG public affairs officer.

“The (Hercules) is the workhorse of the Air Force,” said Maj. Paul Howard, a C-130 pilot from Ramstein Air Base, Germany. “Unlike jet aircraft that require a debris-free runway, the C-130 is a resilient, prop aircraft, and that makes it capable of landing on unfinished airfields.” (Courtesy of U.S. Air Forces in Europe News Service)

UN envoy blames rebels for continuing insecurity in Darfur

The situation in Darfur has not improved during the past month, according to the UN's top envoy, Jan Pronk.

"Darfur remains grim and humanitarian access is limited," Pronk told reporters in Khartoum on Thursday ahead of his visit to New York to report on the Darfur conflict to the Security Council.

"It was the rebels who are responsible for attacking relief workers and convoys, they are responsible for burying landmines which killed two relief workers, Jan Pronk told reporters in Khartoum.

Two rebel groups - the SLA and the JEM are responsible for much of the recent violence in Darfur, he said.

Pronk accused the government and the rebels of continuing to violate an April ceasefire agreement signed in Chad. He also accused the parties of escalating military operations and urged them to "put the interests of the people of Darfur in front of their eyes and speed up reaching a political agreement in Abuja."

The UN envoy said despite the setback he remained optimistic that the two sides would reach an agreement. He added that he had also noted attacks by the pro-government Arab Janjaweed militias had eased, "except for a few of them who are engaged in robbing and looting".

Pronk will present a monthly report to Kofi Annan and the UN Security Council early next week, on what Khartoum is doing to meet its pledges.

A Goodwill Ambassador for the Office of UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Angelina Jolie, told reporters at a press conference in Khartoum on Wednesday that conditions were too dangerous for the region's vast population of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to return to their homes, UN News reported.
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SUDAN REJECTS REBELS' DEMAND TO SEPARATE RELIGION AND STATE

The fifth day of the Darfur peace talks moved on to discussion of a political settlement.

Rebel leaders' demand that Islam be kept out of government in Darfur, has been rejected by government negotiators.

Rebel leaders have used the talks to call for a clear division between religion and the state in Sudan.

"We are now prepared to start deliberations on the political issues, following the appeal of the international observers and facilitators," spokesman for the rebel SLM, said.

"We want a clear distinction between the state and religion. Right now in Sudan you have a situation where Islam is given prominence over other religions.

"This shouldn't be so. Even though I'm a Muslim, we want religion to be a personal thing with every citizen having the freedom to practice what he believes in."

The demand has been immediately rejected by Government negotiators, who insisted that mainly-Muslim northern Sudan, including Darfur, should be governed under the principles of Islamic law.

"Darfur is in the north, so Sharia law should apply. It is not negotiable," Abdul Zuma, media adviser to the Sudanese Government at the talks, said.

Darfur's black African tribes are predominantly Muslim but regard themselves as culturally separate from the Arabs, who dominate the Khartoum Government.

In earlier peace negotiations with mainly Christian rebels in southern Sudan the Government conceded that Sharia law would not apply there under an eventual settlement, but the western region of Darfur was not included in the offer.

U.S. to spend 40 million dollars on Darfur - 47 Nigerian troops arrive in Darfur

U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria John Campbell said Thursday his country has decided to spend 40 million US dollars to ensure the return of peace to the war-torn Darfur region of Sudan.

Campbell made the disclosure in Abuja, Nigeria this morning (Thursday) when he watched the take-off of the first batch of 47 Nigerian troops that left for Darfur to beef up the strength of Nigerian troops already in the area.

According to the ambassador, the US government will continue to provide support to ensure the return of peace to the region.
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47 Nigerian troops arrive in Darfur - more waiting to fly to Darfur on Saturday

Today (Thursday) 47 Nigerian troops, which comprised of four officers and 43 soldiers, left Abuja for Darfur aboard a US Air Force transport plane.

Before leaving the Nigerian capital, the troops received orders not to get involved in the 20-month-old conflict.

"There might be situations where you come across stakeholders in the conflict," Nigerian Major General Shekari Behubiliyok told the troops on the Abuja airstrip.

"You must be impartial and you must not be seen to support one side or the other. Neutrality is the guiding word."

The AU has given them a specific mandate to protect ceasefire monitors and safeguard civilians only if they are under imminent threat.

"The mission of the troops is a protection force to protect observers in Darfur. Our job is to restore peace," said Nigerian Lieutenant Colonel Rabiu Abubakar.

The reinforcements will bolster a force of 300 AU soldiers protecting 150 observers already in the desert region the size of France.

Nigeria expects to deploy another 350 troops over the next few weeks, bringing its total deployment to a battalion of 550, said an army spokesman.

Rwanda and other AU members are expected to lift the total strength to about 3,000.

Shortly after landing in North Darfur state capital El-Fasher, the headquarters of the AU Darfur mission, the U.S. transport plane left for Rwandan capital Kigali where more troops are waiting to fly to Darfur on Saturday.
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The fourth day of the Darfur peace talks stalled today (Thursday) making little progress

Darfur rebels refused to sign a humanitarian accord to allow more aid to refugees, insisting that it be signed together with a security pact that would disarm the Janjaweed.

Mediators have prepared a preliminary agreement on security.

The text calls for the government to identify and disarm the Janjaweed, while the rebels would be required to disclose the location and size of their forces.


The rebels said they needed more time to discuss the issue among themselves. The talks broke off, and are to resume Friday.

One observer said a "word game" was threatening the security discussions.

The Sudanese government is insisting that the word "Janjaweed" be removed from the text of a draft security accord, which would call for their disarmament.

"We are demanding for the word Janjaweed to be taken off," said Ibrahim Mohammed Ibrahim, spokesman for the Sudanese government delegation. It should be replaced by a broader reference to "outlaws or illegal factions or groups, who are not belonging to a tribe of specific area."

Rebel groups said that, with such a description included, the security accord would seem to be calling for their own disarmament, something which they are not willing to consider at present.
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UN SAYS DARFUR CONFLICT STALLING AID

UN says last Saturday, forces from the rebel SLA hijacked seven commerical trucks.

In West Darfur and South Darfur States, UNAMIS said IDPs were harassed by police about their links to the SLA, one of the two rebel groups. Many IDPs were also pressured to return home.

Darfur negotiators lack urgency, cease-fire could collapse in Darfur, U.N. envoy says

Warring parties in Darfur are showing no urgency in the search for a political solution, the top U.N. envoy in Sudan, Jan Pronk, said Wednesday.

The Sudanese government expressed impatience at the rebels' stalling tactics. "We feel they are wasting our time, and I think we have been patient enough. I think this should be their last chance to show whether they are ready to negotiate," said government spokesman Ibrahim Mohammed.

Pronk added that a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding the violence stop in Darfur and a humanitarian protocol drawn up in April meant the two sides need not discuss the issues of aid access and security, which had stalled the previous round of talks in Abuja and continued to block progress in the Nigerian capital this week.

"Don't discuss it anymore -- just do it so that you can discuss political issues, political objectives," he said.

Pronk, who leaves Wednesday for New York to give a monthly briefing on Darfur, said ordinary civilians and aid workers were suffering as talks dragged on.

"Insecurity and violence and violation of human rights is on the rise ... we are hardly able to stop it, and parties do not seem to be willing to stop it on the ground," he said, adding rebels and not the government were impeding aid access to the diseased, hungry and destitute refugees.

Pronk warned if the talks in Abuja did not make progress, the cease-fire, which each side has accused the other of breaking, could collapse in Darfur.