WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress' two Muslim members urged the U.S. government on Wednesday to lead efforts to end the violence in Sudan's Darfur region, where more than 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been displaced.
Reps. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Andre Carson of Indiana joined other black Democratic lawmakers making that call at a "Muslim Voices for Darfur" news conference on Capitol Hill Wednesday. Sudan is a predominantly Muslim African nation.
Ellison, a freshman lawmaker, asked Sudan's government to stop the violence.
"I further call on Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to exert all available influence on the international community and on the parties to the conflict," he said, "and I especially urge Secretary Rice to engage allies among majority-Muslim nations and the African Union."
Ellison was elected as the nation's first Muslim member of Congress in 2006. Carson became the second after winning a special election this year to fill the remainder of his late grandmother's term.
"We talk about America being one of the greatest nations on earth," Carson said. "If we are to have that title ... we need to step out on the world front and be a leader on this issue." Read more >>>>>>>>>
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Sudan: JEM assult highlights peace strategy risks - 12 May 2008
EVENT: Rebels of the Justice and Equality Movement on May 10 launched an assault on Omdurman, a western suburb of Khartoum.
SIGNIFICANCE: Omdurman, situated across the Nile from Khartoum proper, is part of the capital's greater metropolitan area. This is the first time a Darfur rebel group has staged an attack on the capital. Government forces defeated the rebels, but their attack highlights a number of concerns for the government and the wider political situation in Sudan.
ANALYSIS: The full details and repercussions of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) attack on Omdurman on Saturday are still emerging. However, the key details and implications are already apparent:
1. Attack. The attack on Omdurman was never going to succeed in toppling the government by force. However, it succeeded to the extent that it presented an audacious and symbolic challenge to the government's control of the capital:
- Objectives. JEM did not expect to capture the capital, but aimed to send a warning to the government and a wider audience, and to test the strength and loyalty of the army and security forces in the capital. JEM has previously staged small attacks outside Darfur, on targets in Western and Northern Kordofan, and it has always held a stronger interest in political change in Khartoum than has the mainstream Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A). Read more >>>>
SIGNIFICANCE: Omdurman, situated across the Nile from Khartoum proper, is part of the capital's greater metropolitan area. This is the first time a Darfur rebel group has staged an attack on the capital. Government forces defeated the rebels, but their attack highlights a number of concerns for the government and the wider political situation in Sudan.
ANALYSIS: The full details and repercussions of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) attack on Omdurman on Saturday are still emerging. However, the key details and implications are already apparent:
1. Attack. The attack on Omdurman was never going to succeed in toppling the government by force. However, it succeeded to the extent that it presented an audacious and symbolic challenge to the government's control of the capital:
- Objectives. JEM did not expect to capture the capital, but aimed to send a warning to the government and a wider audience, and to test the strength and loyalty of the army and security forces in the capital. JEM has previously staged small attacks outside Darfur, on targets in Western and Northern Kordofan, and it has always held a stronger interest in political change in Khartoum than has the mainstream Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A). Read more >>>>
The brutality of the Khartoum regime's military actions in the Darfur
Who are the victims of this international cowardice? Who suffers when the world refuses to demand justice of those who would deliberately kill children? Let's at least grant the dignity of names to the victims of this most recent barbarism:
•Fatima Suleiman Adam Omar, 3rd grade, 10 years old
•Fatima Ahmad Bashir, 2nd grade, 8 years old
•Mubarak Mohammed Ahmad, 3rd grade, 10 years old
•Yusuf Adam Hamid, kindergarten, 5 years old
•Munira Suleiman Adam, 2nd grade, 7 years old
•Adam Ahmad Yusuf, 4th grade, 11 years old
How would Americans respond if terrorists acting on behalf of another country deliberately killed, with complete military impunity, six young children in one of our nation's schools? Outrage would bring the country to a halt. It would change the very nature of the presidential campaign. News coverage would be unending. Washington's response against the offending nation would be swift and destructive. Read more >>>>>>>
•Fatima Suleiman Adam Omar, 3rd grade, 10 years old
•Fatima Ahmad Bashir, 2nd grade, 8 years old
•Mubarak Mohammed Ahmad, 3rd grade, 10 years old
•Yusuf Adam Hamid, kindergarten, 5 years old
•Munira Suleiman Adam, 2nd grade, 7 years old
•Adam Ahmad Yusuf, 4th grade, 11 years old
How would Americans respond if terrorists acting on behalf of another country deliberately killed, with complete military impunity, six young children in one of our nation's schools? Outrage would bring the country to a halt. It would change the very nature of the presidential campaign. News coverage would be unending. Washington's response against the offending nation would be swift and destructive. Read more >>>>>>>
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Darfur call to action for UK politicians
MPs and peers must do more to pressure the government on action against suspected Sudanese war criminals, chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo believes.
Addressing MPs and peers in parliament yesterday, the international criminal court (ICC) prosecutor pressed the importance of parliamentarians around the world helping get beyond the "lack of enforcement" seen in too many countries.
Fifteen months have passed since the ICC named Sudan's humanitarian affairs minister, Ahmed Haroun, and Ali Kosheib, Janjaweed leader, as chief suspects of war crimes against humanity in Darfur.
Khartoum has refused to surrender the pair and Mr Moreno-Ocampo blames the "very weak" stance by the international community for a "missed opportunity" on the issue.
The chief prosecutor warned that "in 40 years the whole world will be like Darfur" if the rule of international law is not upheld.
And he called on MPs and peers to pressure the government on the issue, telling them "I think you can make a real difference here".
He told politics.co.uk the best way to achieve this was through "showing interest" and "talking about the issue". Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
China's role in Darfur deadly
BY ALPHA LISIMBA
The recent international uproar over China's treatment of Tibet has drawn attention to the domestic human-rights record of this year's Olympic host country. Receiving less attention are China's policies in Africa.
As a Sudanese person from the Darfur region, a survivor of a genocide orchestrated by my own government, I have experienced first-hand the deadly effects of China's foreign policy.
The country has consistently sabotaged attempts by other states to curb the violence and human-rights abuse in Sudan.
Although the Sudanese Government is ultimately responsible for the tragedy in Darfur, there is ample evidence that China's actions have contributed significantly to the ongoing conflict and suffering.
The conflict is now in its fifth year, yet the United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur has still not been equipped with sufficient resources to fulfil its mandate to protect those most vulnerable.
According to the latest UN report, over 300,000 people have been killed and three million displaced, most now cramped in squalid camps along the volatile Chad/Sudan border.
Between 2002 and 2005, the most disastrous years of the genocide, China transferred $US45 million ($A48 million) worth of weapons and ammunition to the Sudanese Government.
Since 2005, China has provided 90 per cent of all small arms in Sudan, many of which are found in the hands of government troops as well as the murderous Janjaweed militia. Read more >>>>>>>
The recent international uproar over China's treatment of Tibet has drawn attention to the domestic human-rights record of this year's Olympic host country. Receiving less attention are China's policies in Africa.
As a Sudanese person from the Darfur region, a survivor of a genocide orchestrated by my own government, I have experienced first-hand the deadly effects of China's foreign policy.
The country has consistently sabotaged attempts by other states to curb the violence and human-rights abuse in Sudan.
Although the Sudanese Government is ultimately responsible for the tragedy in Darfur, there is ample evidence that China's actions have contributed significantly to the ongoing conflict and suffering.
The conflict is now in its fifth year, yet the United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur has still not been equipped with sufficient resources to fulfil its mandate to protect those most vulnerable.
According to the latest UN report, over 300,000 people have been killed and three million displaced, most now cramped in squalid camps along the volatile Chad/Sudan border.
Between 2002 and 2005, the most disastrous years of the genocide, China transferred $US45 million ($A48 million) worth of weapons and ammunition to the Sudanese Government.
Since 2005, China has provided 90 per cent of all small arms in Sudan, many of which are found in the hands of government troops as well as the murderous Janjaweed militia. Read more >>>>>>>
Monday, May 05, 2008
Darfur school 'bombed from air'
A Sudanese government air strike on a school in Darfur has killed at least seven children, according to the aid organisation Darfur Diaries.
The group's spokeswoman says six more people were killed when a market was bombed during the same attack on the village of Shegeg Karo on Sunday.
A rebel group says there were four air raids in total in North Darfur.
The Sudanese air force has made no comment. Under a UN resolution, all offensive flying is banned in Sudan.
Since the conflict began in Darfur five years ago, the UN estimates that some 300,000 have died and two million have been displaced.
The UN and African Union Mission to Darfur (Unamid) said the reported bombings were "unacceptable acts against civilians".
Its peacekeeping force of 26,000 has yet to be completely deployed to Darfur, and officials say it is unlikely to be up to full strength this year. Read more >>>>>>
The group's spokeswoman says six more people were killed when a market was bombed during the same attack on the village of Shegeg Karo on Sunday.
A rebel group says there were four air raids in total in North Darfur.
The Sudanese air force has made no comment. Under a UN resolution, all offensive flying is banned in Sudan.
Since the conflict began in Darfur five years ago, the UN estimates that some 300,000 have died and two million have been displaced.
The UN and African Union Mission to Darfur (Unamid) said the reported bombings were "unacceptable acts against civilians".
Its peacekeeping force of 26,000 has yet to be completely deployed to Darfur, and officials say it is unlikely to be up to full strength this year. Read more >>>>>>
Friday, May 02, 2008
China 'underwriting' atrocities in Darfur
HONG KONG (AFP) — US actress and activist Mia Farrow accused China on Friday of "underwriting the atrocities in Darfur" as she tried to put pressure on Beijing to end years of bloodshed in the Sudanese region.
Farrow, speaking in Hong Kong as the Olympic torch relay was borne through the southern Chinese city, is using the high profile of this summer's Beijing Games to highlight China's support of the Sudanese government.
"It isn't a pretty way to say this, but China is underwriting the atrocities in Darfur through the oil revenues which now top 4 billion US dollars a year," she told AFP in an interview.
"Some 70 percent of that money has been used to attack the population of Darfur."
She appealed for Chinese leaders to help stop the unrest, which has led to more than two million people fleeing their homes since the Sudanese government enlisted militia allies to put down a revolt in the region in 2003.
"Please China, you have it within your considerable power to alter the course of history to bring about an end to the suffering in Darfur," she said.
"I don't believe for a second that Sudan could have continued this level of destruction against its own people for more than five years without the backing of a giant, and that giant is China." Read more >>>>>
Farrow, speaking in Hong Kong as the Olympic torch relay was borne through the southern Chinese city, is using the high profile of this summer's Beijing Games to highlight China's support of the Sudanese government.
"It isn't a pretty way to say this, but China is underwriting the atrocities in Darfur through the oil revenues which now top 4 billion US dollars a year," she told AFP in an interview.
"Some 70 percent of that money has been used to attack the population of Darfur."
She appealed for Chinese leaders to help stop the unrest, which has led to more than two million people fleeing their homes since the Sudanese government enlisted militia allies to put down a revolt in the region in 2003.
"Please China, you have it within your considerable power to alter the course of history to bring about an end to the suffering in Darfur," she said.
"I don't believe for a second that Sudan could have continued this level of destruction against its own people for more than five years without the backing of a giant, and that giant is China." Read more >>>>>
Thursday, May 01, 2008
The Darfur War Crimes Test
By MIA FARROW and ERIC REEVES
This week marks a grim and largely unnoticed anniversary. On April 27, 2007, International Criminal Court judges issued arrest warrants for two men involved in the massive, ongoing atrocities in the Darfur region of western Sudan: Former state minister of the interior Ahmed Haroun, and Ali Kushayb, a key leader of the brutal Arab militia known as Janjaweed. Both are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Evidence in the ICC cases against both men is overwhelming, including numerous eyewitness accounts from victims as well as compelling documentary evidence. Yet Khartoum refuses to extradite or lift a finger in prosecuting either man.
No surprise there. Were Mr. Haroun and Mr. Kushayb to testify in the Hague, where the ICC is based, the most senior members of the Khartoum regime would be at obvious risk of indictment themselves. Mr. Haroun in particular could point far up the military and civilian chain of command.
In a grotesque irony, Mr. Haroun has even been promoted to the position of state minister for humanitarian affairs, with major responsibility for millions of desperate victims of the very crimes he orchestrated.
More than five years have passed since the Khartoum regime and its Janjaweed allies launched their campaign of destruction against the non-Arab populations of Darfur. The savagery of the attacks upon civilians, the torched villages, mass murders, rapes, abductions and mutilations have made the word Darfur synonymous with human suffering. More than 2.5 million people have fled from their burning homes in terror, seeking tenuous refuge in wretched camps across Darfur and eastern Chad.
The ICC is charged with investigating and prosecuting cases in which the national courts of a country cannot or will not render justice even in the face of the most horrific international crimes. The ICC, however, has no police force of its own, and so relies on others to execute its arrest warrants. In the case of Darfur, the ICC arrest warrants derive from a United Nations Security Council resolution. Read more >>>>>>>>
This week marks a grim and largely unnoticed anniversary. On April 27, 2007, International Criminal Court judges issued arrest warrants for two men involved in the massive, ongoing atrocities in the Darfur region of western Sudan: Former state minister of the interior Ahmed Haroun, and Ali Kushayb, a key leader of the brutal Arab militia known as Janjaweed. Both are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Evidence in the ICC cases against both men is overwhelming, including numerous eyewitness accounts from victims as well as compelling documentary evidence. Yet Khartoum refuses to extradite or lift a finger in prosecuting either man.
No surprise there. Were Mr. Haroun and Mr. Kushayb to testify in the Hague, where the ICC is based, the most senior members of the Khartoum regime would be at obvious risk of indictment themselves. Mr. Haroun in particular could point far up the military and civilian chain of command.
In a grotesque irony, Mr. Haroun has even been promoted to the position of state minister for humanitarian affairs, with major responsibility for millions of desperate victims of the very crimes he orchestrated.
More than five years have passed since the Khartoum regime and its Janjaweed allies launched their campaign of destruction against the non-Arab populations of Darfur. The savagery of the attacks upon civilians, the torched villages, mass murders, rapes, abductions and mutilations have made the word Darfur synonymous with human suffering. More than 2.5 million people have fled from their burning homes in terror, seeking tenuous refuge in wretched camps across Darfur and eastern Chad.
The ICC is charged with investigating and prosecuting cases in which the national courts of a country cannot or will not render justice even in the face of the most horrific international crimes. The ICC, however, has no police force of its own, and so relies on others to execute its arrest warrants. In the case of Darfur, the ICC arrest warrants derive from a United Nations Security Council resolution. Read more >>>>>>>>
The Darfur War Crimes Test
By MIA FARROW and ERIC REEVES
This week marks a grim and largely unnoticed anniversary. On April 27, 2007, International Criminal Court judges issued arrest warrants for two men involved in the massive, ongoing atrocities in the Darfur region of western Sudan: Former state minister of the interior Ahmed Haroun, and Ali Kushayb, a key leader of the brutal Arab militia known as Janjaweed. Both are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Evidence in the ICC cases against both men is overwhelming, including numerous eyewitness accounts from victims as well as compelling documentary evidence. Yet Khartoum refuses to extradite or lift a finger in prosecuting either man.
No surprise there. Were Mr. Haroun and Mr. Kushayb to testify in the Hague, where the ICC is based, the most senior members of the Khartoum regime would be at obvious risk of indictment themselves. Mr. Haroun in particular could point far up the military and civilian chain of command.
In a grotesque irony, Mr. Haroun has even been promoted to the position of state minister for humanitarian affairs, with major responsibility for millions of desperate victims of the very crimes he orchestrated.
More than five years have passed since the Khartoum regime and its Janjaweed allies launched their campaign of destruction against the non-Arab populations of Darfur. The savagery of the attacks upon civilians, the torched villages, mass murders, rapes, abductions and mutilations have made the word Darfur synonymous with human suffering. More than 2.5 million people have fled from their burning homes in terror, seeking tenuous refuge in wretched camps across Darfur and eastern Chad.
The ICC is charged with investigating and prosecuting cases in which the national courts of a country cannot or will not render justice even in the face of the most horrific international crimes. The ICC, however, has no police force of its own, and so relies on others to execute its arrest warrants. In the case of Darfur, the ICC arrest warrants derive from a United Nations Security Council resolution. Read more >>>>>>>>
This week marks a grim and largely unnoticed anniversary. On April 27, 2007, International Criminal Court judges issued arrest warrants for two men involved in the massive, ongoing atrocities in the Darfur region of western Sudan: Former state minister of the interior Ahmed Haroun, and Ali Kushayb, a key leader of the brutal Arab militia known as Janjaweed. Both are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Evidence in the ICC cases against both men is overwhelming, including numerous eyewitness accounts from victims as well as compelling documentary evidence. Yet Khartoum refuses to extradite or lift a finger in prosecuting either man.
No surprise there. Were Mr. Haroun and Mr. Kushayb to testify in the Hague, where the ICC is based, the most senior members of the Khartoum regime would be at obvious risk of indictment themselves. Mr. Haroun in particular could point far up the military and civilian chain of command.
In a grotesque irony, Mr. Haroun has even been promoted to the position of state minister for humanitarian affairs, with major responsibility for millions of desperate victims of the very crimes he orchestrated.
More than five years have passed since the Khartoum regime and its Janjaweed allies launched their campaign of destruction against the non-Arab populations of Darfur. The savagery of the attacks upon civilians, the torched villages, mass murders, rapes, abductions and mutilations have made the word Darfur synonymous with human suffering. More than 2.5 million people have fled from their burning homes in terror, seeking tenuous refuge in wretched camps across Darfur and eastern Chad.
The ICC is charged with investigating and prosecuting cases in which the national courts of a country cannot or will not render justice even in the face of the most horrific international crimes. The ICC, however, has no police force of its own, and so relies on others to execute its arrest warrants. In the case of Darfur, the ICC arrest warrants derive from a United Nations Security Council resolution. Read more >>>>>>>>
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Darfur's Other Culprits
OXFORD, ENGLAND - As the world expresses outrage over China's support for Sudan, we are turning a blind eye to other enablers of that nation's genocide.
China is a major financial supporter of the Sudanese government, which is massacring its own citizens in Darfur. As a result, human rights activists are using the 2008 Beijing Olympics to draw attention to China's complicity in the ongoing slaughter, as well as to the government's brutal crackdown on protesters in Tibet.
But while the Olympic torch relay has been dogged by demonstrations, other unseemly ties between the Sudanese government and the sporting world are being overlooked. In Formula One auto racing, the Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix went off without a hitch March 23, despite the fact that the race's corporate sponsor is one of the Sudanese government's biggest backers.
Petronas, Malaysia's state-owned oil and gas company, has poured an estimated $1.5 billion into Sudan's petroleum sector, providing cash the Sudanese government can then use to finance its weapons purchases.
And in soccer, India's 10-team I-League has been holding its matches protest-free, even though the league's sponsor, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), has also channeled about $1.5 billion to Sudan.
Petronas, ONGC, and two Beijing-based companies, China National Petroleum (CNPC) and Sinopec, form a quartet known as "the Big 4" because of their dominant position in the Sudanese oil industry. The Big 4 serve up the cash that is a crucial ingredient in the genocidal formula of Sudan's Bashir regime. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
China is a major financial supporter of the Sudanese government, which is massacring its own citizens in Darfur. As a result, human rights activists are using the 2008 Beijing Olympics to draw attention to China's complicity in the ongoing slaughter, as well as to the government's brutal crackdown on protesters in Tibet.
But while the Olympic torch relay has been dogged by demonstrations, other unseemly ties between the Sudanese government and the sporting world are being overlooked. In Formula One auto racing, the Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix went off without a hitch March 23, despite the fact that the race's corporate sponsor is one of the Sudanese government's biggest backers.
Petronas, Malaysia's state-owned oil and gas company, has poured an estimated $1.5 billion into Sudan's petroleum sector, providing cash the Sudanese government can then use to finance its weapons purchases.
And in soccer, India's 10-team I-League has been holding its matches protest-free, even though the league's sponsor, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), has also channeled about $1.5 billion to Sudan.
Petronas, ONGC, and two Beijing-based companies, China National Petroleum (CNPC) and Sinopec, form a quartet known as "the Big 4" because of their dominant position in the Sudanese oil industry. The Big 4 serve up the cash that is a crucial ingredient in the genocidal formula of Sudan's Bashir regime. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
If no blue helmets in Darfur, then whom would UN rescue?
UNITED NATIONS — In an unusually candid and starkly realistic situation report, the ranking UN humanitarian official painted a pessimistic picture of the current situation in Sudan’s beleaguered Darfur region. “I am saddened and angry that, after five years of suffering, and four years since this Council became actively engaged, we have still not been able to find a lasting solution to the suffering of the millions of men, women, and children,” chided John Holmes, Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian affairs in a Security Council briefing.
Addressing the effects of the ongoing ethnic conflict between Sudan’s Islamic Arab regime and Black African nomads in the parched Darfur region, Under-Secretary Holmes warned, “Hostilities between the parties, intra-rebel and tribal clashes and aerial bombardments, and the resurgence of the Janjaweed militias have resulted in death, displacement and widespread violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.” He added poignantly, “Darfur today is still characterized by insecurity lawlessness…The effects on civilians are not difficult to imagine…a particularly worrying feature is evidence of high levels of sexual violence and exploitation.”
But where are the UN blue-helmet peacekeepers? Where’s the cavalry riding to the rescue? For the past three years there been anxious expectation that there would be serious military intervention to stop the killing. The African Union sent in an under-strength mission with marginal effect. Last July the UN Security Council finally and unanimously announced that it would dispatch a “hybrid force” into Darfur. The newly-minted UNAMID would be the UN’s biggest peacekeeping operation to date.
While this is already too little, too late, the UN now estimates that the number of Darfur civilians killed in this hideous ethnic cleansing may have reached 300,000 in this inter-Islamic violence! There are more than 2.5 million internally displaced persons and a further 260,000 refugees in neighboring countries according to the UN’s Holmes. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Addressing the effects of the ongoing ethnic conflict between Sudan’s Islamic Arab regime and Black African nomads in the parched Darfur region, Under-Secretary Holmes warned, “Hostilities between the parties, intra-rebel and tribal clashes and aerial bombardments, and the resurgence of the Janjaweed militias have resulted in death, displacement and widespread violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.” He added poignantly, “Darfur today is still characterized by insecurity lawlessness…The effects on civilians are not difficult to imagine…a particularly worrying feature is evidence of high levels of sexual violence and exploitation.”
But where are the UN blue-helmet peacekeepers? Where’s the cavalry riding to the rescue? For the past three years there been anxious expectation that there would be serious military intervention to stop the killing. The African Union sent in an under-strength mission with marginal effect. Last July the UN Security Council finally and unanimously announced that it would dispatch a “hybrid force” into Darfur. The newly-minted UNAMID would be the UN’s biggest peacekeeping operation to date.
While this is already too little, too late, the UN now estimates that the number of Darfur civilians killed in this hideous ethnic cleansing may have reached 300,000 in this inter-Islamic violence! There are more than 2.5 million internally displaced persons and a further 260,000 refugees in neighboring countries according to the UN’s Holmes. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Monday, April 28, 2008
Darfur: The other war we forgot
It seems like only yesterday. But it’s nearly two years ago that I did an impassioned piece on the tragedy of Darfur. Thank God, it managed to make its point. It was widely noticed and talked about. It even brought me European Union’s media prize. I collected my prize in Brussels and promptly consigned the issue to the back of that amazing cold storage called human mind.
Meanwhile, two years on, little has changed in Darfur. It continues to bleed and burn as ever. The world may have moved on. It might have grown weary of reading and hearing about the conflict in a region that is hardly a stranger to strife and war. But Darfur remains stuck in the time warp where it was two years ago. Only more people have died. More innocents have paid with their lives for the goals and objectives of those fighting this terrible war.
I am sure there are some noble objectives driving this war too. Else, why would Sudan look the other way while tens of thousands of innocent people — its own people — are killed, raped and hunted like animals in the full glare of world media?
Two years ago, in 2006, when I wrote that piece on Darfur there were fears that close to 300,000 people might have already perished. Even a conservative survey by the WHO in 2006 estimated that at least 200,000 people had died of fighting and disease and malnutrition caused by it. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Meanwhile, two years on, little has changed in Darfur. It continues to bleed and burn as ever. The world may have moved on. It might have grown weary of reading and hearing about the conflict in a region that is hardly a stranger to strife and war. But Darfur remains stuck in the time warp where it was two years ago. Only more people have died. More innocents have paid with their lives for the goals and objectives of those fighting this terrible war.
I am sure there are some noble objectives driving this war too. Else, why would Sudan look the other way while tens of thousands of innocent people — its own people — are killed, raped and hunted like animals in the full glare of world media?
Two years ago, in 2006, when I wrote that piece on Darfur there were fears that close to 300,000 people might have already perished. Even a conservative survey by the WHO in 2006 estimated that at least 200,000 people had died of fighting and disease and malnutrition caused by it. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Darfur: The other war we forgot
It seems like only yesterday. But it’s nearly two years ago that I did an impassioned piece on the tragedy of Darfur. Thank God, it managed to make its point. It was widely noticed and talked about. It even brought me European Union’s media prize. I collected my prize in Brussels and promptly consigned the issue to the back of that amazing cold storage called human mind.
Meanwhile, two years on, little has changed in Darfur. It continues to bleed and burn as ever. The world may have moved on. It might have grown weary of reading and hearing about the conflict in a region that is hardly a stranger to strife and war. But Darfur remains stuck in the time warp where it was two years ago. Only more people have died. More innocents have paid with their lives for the goals and objectives of those fighting this terrible war.
I am sure there are some noble objectives driving this war too. Else, why would Sudan look the other way while tens of thousands of innocent people — its own people — are killed, raped and hunted like animals in the full glare of world media?
Two years ago, in 2006, when I wrote that piece on Darfur there were fears that close to 300,000 people might have already perished. Even a conservative survey by the WHO in 2006 estimated that at least 200,000 people had died of fighting and disease and malnutrition caused by it. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Meanwhile, two years on, little has changed in Darfur. It continues to bleed and burn as ever. The world may have moved on. It might have grown weary of reading and hearing about the conflict in a region that is hardly a stranger to strife and war. But Darfur remains stuck in the time warp where it was two years ago. Only more people have died. More innocents have paid with their lives for the goals and objectives of those fighting this terrible war.
I am sure there are some noble objectives driving this war too. Else, why would Sudan look the other way while tens of thousands of innocent people — its own people — are killed, raped and hunted like animals in the full glare of world media?
Two years ago, in 2006, when I wrote that piece on Darfur there were fears that close to 300,000 people might have already perished. Even a conservative survey by the WHO in 2006 estimated that at least 200,000 people had died of fighting and disease and malnutrition caused by it. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Crisis Darfur: A Conversation with Mia Farrow and Bernard-Henri Lévy
Join Guernica this Tuesday, April 29th for "Crisis Darfur: A Conversation with Mia Farrow and Bernard-Henri Lévy." Ms. Farrow and Mr. Levy will recount their visits to the region and their ongoing efforts to end the genocide. The panel will also consider the role that artists, intellectuals, and witnesses can play in ending the genocide. Dinaw Mengestu will moderate a discussion, following their accounts, on what's needed now to end the atrocities in the region.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 8pm
Florence Gould Hall, The French Institute Alliance Française: 55 East 59th St.
For more details on the event and on purchasing a ticket: >>>>>>
Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 8pm
Florence Gould Hall, The French Institute Alliance Française: 55 East 59th St.
For more details on the event and on purchasing a ticket: >>>>>>
Saturday, April 26, 2008
60,000 Darfur refugees detail horrific memories in petition
More than 60,000 Darfur refugees living camps in Chad shared their heart-wrenching stories in a petition that was delivered Friday to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
The petition, sent to Brown's house and office at 10 Downing Street in London, begs Brown and other international leaders to crack down on the violence that has raged in the Darfur region of Sudan since April, 2003. Letters detailing the contents of the petition were sent to other world leaders, including Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and leaders at the United Nations.
The refugees who participated included written stories alongside their signatures that talked about the horror of being raped and the terror of watching militants destroy their homes.
Some of the participants, just children, made crayon drawings of their memories, submitting pictures of soldiers with guns and people covered in blood.
"They have displaced us and killed us and raped us in front of our children and husbands," one woman wrote. "They killed our children and burned our houses." Read more >>>>
The petition, sent to Brown's house and office at 10 Downing Street in London, begs Brown and other international leaders to crack down on the violence that has raged in the Darfur region of Sudan since April, 2003. Letters detailing the contents of the petition were sent to other world leaders, including Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and leaders at the United Nations.
The refugees who participated included written stories alongside their signatures that talked about the horror of being raped and the terror of watching militants destroy their homes.
Some of the participants, just children, made crayon drawings of their memories, submitting pictures of soldiers with guns and people covered in blood.
"They have displaced us and killed us and raped us in front of our children and husbands," one woman wrote. "They killed our children and burned our houses." Read more >>>>
Global court could indict more over Sudan's Darfur
By Emma Thomasson
AMSTERDAM, April 26 (Reuters) - The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court warned Sudan on Saturday he will move against more officials soon if Khartoum fails to arrest suspects he has sought for a year over crimes in Darfur.
Luis Moreno Ocampo told Reuters in an interview he planned to present evidence against new suspects to ICC judges before the end of the year if Khartoum does not hand over two suspects by the time he reports to the U.N. Security Council on June 5.
Judges at the ICC, set up in 2002 in The Hague as the world's first permanent court to try individuals for war crimes, issued arrest warrants for two Sudanese suspects on April 27 last year, but Khartoum has refused to hand them over.
The wanted men are Ahmed Haroun, former state minister of interior, and militia commander Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb.
They are suspected of inciting murder, rape, and torture, as well as the forced displacement of villagers in Darfur. Haroun has since been made state minister of humanitarian affairs.
"They have 2.5 million people displaced in camps, full of fear and they put Haroun in charge of them. Imagine that your rapist is your teacher. It is another way to keep them under attack," Moreno-Ocampo said in a telephone interview.
"Each morning I wake up and I think about those people," he said. "The question is who put him (Haroun) there. Whose instructions is he following? The lack of arrest is interesting evidence for us ... Who promised immunity?" Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
AMSTERDAM, April 26 (Reuters) - The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court warned Sudan on Saturday he will move against more officials soon if Khartoum fails to arrest suspects he has sought for a year over crimes in Darfur.
Luis Moreno Ocampo told Reuters in an interview he planned to present evidence against new suspects to ICC judges before the end of the year if Khartoum does not hand over two suspects by the time he reports to the U.N. Security Council on June 5.
Judges at the ICC, set up in 2002 in The Hague as the world's first permanent court to try individuals for war crimes, issued arrest warrants for two Sudanese suspects on April 27 last year, but Khartoum has refused to hand them over.
The wanted men are Ahmed Haroun, former state minister of interior, and militia commander Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb.
They are suspected of inciting murder, rape, and torture, as well as the forced displacement of villagers in Darfur. Haroun has since been made state minister of humanitarian affairs.
"They have 2.5 million people displaced in camps, full of fear and they put Haroun in charge of them. Imagine that your rapist is your teacher. It is another way to keep them under attack," Moreno-Ocampo said in a telephone interview.
"Each morning I wake up and I think about those people," he said. "The question is who put him (Haroun) there. Whose instructions is he following? The lack of arrest is interesting evidence for us ... Who promised immunity?" Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Humanitarian Crisis in Darfur Worsening
The humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan is worsening and the number of killed and displaced people continues to grow, reflecting an atmosphere of continuing violence, a senior U.S. diplomat says.
"The conflict that has created all of this humanitarian suffering has mutated from the Sudanese government's counterinsurgency campaign against new active rebel groups in Darfur in 2003, which targeted innocent Darfurians with unconscionable savagery, to a situation that is complicated by shifting alliances, growing ambitions, tribal conflicts and regional meddling," says Ambassador Richard Williamson, the U.S. special envoy to Sudan.
"The government of Sudan, the Arab militias, and rebel leaders all have blood on their hands," he said. "Make no mistake: this 'genocide in slow motion' continues, casualties mount, and more must be done to alleviate the terrible humanitarian suffering and bring sustainable stability and peace to this region brutalized and stained with the blood of innocent people. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
"The conflict that has created all of this humanitarian suffering has mutated from the Sudanese government's counterinsurgency campaign against new active rebel groups in Darfur in 2003, which targeted innocent Darfurians with unconscionable savagery, to a situation that is complicated by shifting alliances, growing ambitions, tribal conflicts and regional meddling," says Ambassador Richard Williamson, the U.S. special envoy to Sudan.
"The government of Sudan, the Arab militias, and rebel leaders all have blood on their hands," he said. "Make no mistake: this 'genocide in slow motion' continues, casualties mount, and more must be done to alleviate the terrible humanitarian suffering and bring sustainable stability and peace to this region brutalized and stained with the blood of innocent people. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Two killed in Darfur camp after census starts
By Andrew Heavens
KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Armed raiders shot dead at least two people in a Darfur displacement camp on Wednesday, residents and aid workers said.
Residents at Kalma camp had staged a protest against Sudan's national census on Tuesday, the day counting started, and said they would refuse to take part because they could not trust government organisers.
The attackers tried to force their way into the camp in south Darfur at 4 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) and then fired into the settlement, camp resident representative Abu Sherati told Reuters.
"The bandits are still just outside the camp and we can still hear shooting. Everyone is very scared," he said, speaking from the camp by phone in mid-morning.
One official from an aid group operating in the area, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was still unclear who the attackers were and whether the raid was linked to the census.
"But tension is certainly high at the moment because of the census so any small incidents are likely to escalate," said the official. Aid groups suspended work in Kalma following the violence.
Kalma, a base for more than 90,000 people forced out of their homes by fighting, has been targeted by pro-Khartoum militias in the past.
Sudan's census has been hailed as a vital step towards Sudan's democratic elections in 23 years, due to be held in 2009 under the terms of a north-south peace deal. It will also be used to help in the distribution of power and wealth. Read more >>>>>>
KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Armed raiders shot dead at least two people in a Darfur displacement camp on Wednesday, residents and aid workers said.
Residents at Kalma camp had staged a protest against Sudan's national census on Tuesday, the day counting started, and said they would refuse to take part because they could not trust government organisers.
The attackers tried to force their way into the camp in south Darfur at 4 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) and then fired into the settlement, camp resident representative Abu Sherati told Reuters.
"The bandits are still just outside the camp and we can still hear shooting. Everyone is very scared," he said, speaking from the camp by phone in mid-morning.
One official from an aid group operating in the area, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was still unclear who the attackers were and whether the raid was linked to the census.
"But tension is certainly high at the moment because of the census so any small incidents are likely to escalate," said the official. Aid groups suspended work in Kalma following the violence.
Kalma, a base for more than 90,000 people forced out of their homes by fighting, has been targeted by pro-Khartoum militias in the past.
Sudan's census has been hailed as a vital step towards Sudan's democratic elections in 23 years, due to be held in 2009 under the terms of a north-south peace deal. It will also be used to help in the distribution of power and wealth. Read more >>>>>>
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Hundreds rally in Dayton for Darfur
By Kelli Wynn
DAYTON — There are two things that happen to those living in Darfur villages that are attacked by the Sudanese militia known as the Janjaweed, according to Ibrahim Musa Adam.
"If you are a man, they will shoot you. If you are a woman, you will be raped," Adam said as he addressed hundreds who attended a Dayton Rally for Darfur on Saturday, April 19, at the Dayton Convention Center.
Adam, 33, a Darfur native and Rockford, Ill. resident, was one of many speakers who came to Dayton to raise awareness about the ethnic conflict taking place in Darfur, which is in Sudan — the largest country of Africa in area.
Those attending the rally learned that Darfur has 6 million inhabitants who are among the poorest in Africa. They also learned that 4 million people have been affected by the attacks and about 2 million people have been displaced.
When asked why people are getting killed and attacked, Adam said it had to do with the greed of the Arabic Sudan Government whose armed forces support the Janjaweed. The government wants the land where the Darfur people live.
The current crisis began in 2003 after "two rebel groups mounted a challenge to Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir, according to Save Darfur Coalition literature that was passed out at the rally. Al-Bashir responded to the rebel movement by increasing arms and support to militias such as the Janjaweed, who began wiping out villages in Darfur.
Villages of up to 20,000 people have been burned down and at least 400,000 people have died, according to Voices from Darfur video that was shown at the rally. The United Nations estimates that violence in Darfur has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced at least 2 million.
"If our country isn't doing anything to stop (the killings) then we are not yelling loud enough," said Steve Wonderly of Dayton for Darfur before the crowd marched to the Dayton Convention Center from Courthouse Square. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
DAYTON — There are two things that happen to those living in Darfur villages that are attacked by the Sudanese militia known as the Janjaweed, according to Ibrahim Musa Adam.
"If you are a man, they will shoot you. If you are a woman, you will be raped," Adam said as he addressed hundreds who attended a Dayton Rally for Darfur on Saturday, April 19, at the Dayton Convention Center.
Adam, 33, a Darfur native and Rockford, Ill. resident, was one of many speakers who came to Dayton to raise awareness about the ethnic conflict taking place in Darfur, which is in Sudan — the largest country of Africa in area.
Those attending the rally learned that Darfur has 6 million inhabitants who are among the poorest in Africa. They also learned that 4 million people have been affected by the attacks and about 2 million people have been displaced.
When asked why people are getting killed and attacked, Adam said it had to do with the greed of the Arabic Sudan Government whose armed forces support the Janjaweed. The government wants the land where the Darfur people live.
The current crisis began in 2003 after "two rebel groups mounted a challenge to Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir, according to Save Darfur Coalition literature that was passed out at the rally. Al-Bashir responded to the rebel movement by increasing arms and support to militias such as the Janjaweed, who began wiping out villages in Darfur.
Villages of up to 20,000 people have been burned down and at least 400,000 people have died, according to Voices from Darfur video that was shown at the rally. The United Nations estimates that violence in Darfur has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced at least 2 million.
"If our country isn't doing anything to stop (the killings) then we are not yelling loud enough," said Steve Wonderly of Dayton for Darfur before the crowd marched to the Dayton Convention Center from Courthouse Square. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Genocide in Darfur: How we can and are helping
By: Lauren Piro
In February 2003, violence and rebellion erupted in Sudan. Marginalized and neglected people of the non-Arab Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups in Darfur coalesced as two rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Army/Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement. They demanded government action to put an end to their economic depression, as well as to give them a voice in the Arab-run Sudanese government. What they received was a brutal response that became a war and what many today consider to be genocide.
The Arab tribe Janjaweed, Sudanese government-supported militia (although support of their practices is often denied by political leaders in Sudan), went on a brutal spree, targeting civilians of the rebel tribes - pillaging and destroying villages, raping women and murdering countless numbers of people. According to Amnesty International, as well as many other non-profit Darfur-awareness organizations and as found in U.N. data, at least 200,000 people have died due to violence and disease, with another 2.5 million displaced as fleeing refugees, either internally to other parts of Sudan or to another country such as Chad. However, as reported by CNN.com in March, Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir has stated that the severity of the crisis is merely a "media-fabrication" and that fewer than 10,000 have died and less than 500,000 have been displaced - figures generally unaccepted by non-profit groups rallying against the conflict. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
In February 2003, violence and rebellion erupted in Sudan. Marginalized and neglected people of the non-Arab Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups in Darfur coalesced as two rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Army/Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement. They demanded government action to put an end to their economic depression, as well as to give them a voice in the Arab-run Sudanese government. What they received was a brutal response that became a war and what many today consider to be genocide.
The Arab tribe Janjaweed, Sudanese government-supported militia (although support of their practices is often denied by political leaders in Sudan), went on a brutal spree, targeting civilians of the rebel tribes - pillaging and destroying villages, raping women and murdering countless numbers of people. According to Amnesty International, as well as many other non-profit Darfur-awareness organizations and as found in U.N. data, at least 200,000 people have died due to violence and disease, with another 2.5 million displaced as fleeing refugees, either internally to other parts of Sudan or to another country such as Chad. However, as reported by CNN.com in March, Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir has stated that the severity of the crisis is merely a "media-fabrication" and that fewer than 10,000 have died and less than 500,000 have been displaced - figures generally unaccepted by non-profit groups rallying against the conflict. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Darfuri diaspora leaders urge Darfur focus at upcoming Security Council special session
WASHINGTON - The Darfuri Leaders Network, a broad-based alliance representing Darfuri diaspora organizations across the U.S., today urged members of the U.N. Security Council to address the ongoing violence and humanitarian crisis in Darfur during an upcoming special session of the council this week.
In a letter to South African U.N. Ambassador and current Security Council President Dumisani S. Kumalo, the DLN encouraged the council to ensure the full and rapid deployment of the UNAMID peacekeeping force; impose immediate sanctions on the Sudanese government officials accused of crimes against humanity, violation of mandatory U.N. Security Council resolutions, obstruction of UNAMID deployment and non-compliance with decisions of the International Criminal Court; and outline measurable benchmarks to evaluate Sudanese government compliance with relevant U.N. resolutions.
"Our families, friends and people in Darfur narrate to us horrifying accounts of well orchestrated atrocities and serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law on a daily basis," the letter said. "We are, therefore, obliged to remind the world of the systemic attacks against civilians."
The DLN also expressed its concern over the invitation of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to address the council at the special session. Bashir has shown contempt for international law and continues to obstruct deployment of the UNAMID peacekeeping force. Government security forces and allied janjaweed militia have, since the beginning of 2008, killed hundreds and forcibly displaced more than 80,000 Darfuris. Additionally, government forces are responsible for recent assaults against UNAMID peacekeepers.
The full text of the letter appears below:
H. E. Ambassador Dumisani S. Kumalo
President of the UN Security Council
Permanent Mission of South Africa to the United Nations
333 East 38th Street
New York, N.Y. 10016 April 16, 2008
Dear Ambassador Kumalo,
We write to you as concerned leaders of civil society organizations of the Darfuri Diaspora.
The upcoming special session of the United Nations Security Council which, among other things, is scheduled to address the situation in Darfur represents not only an opportune moment but also a compelling one for us to raise, once again, our grave concern about the perpetually murderous situation in Darfur. Our families, friends and people in Darfur narrate to us horrifying accounts of well orchestrated atrocities and serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law on a daily basis. We are, therefore, obliged to remind the world of the systemic attacks against civilians; destruction of habitats and livelihoods; targeting of internally displaced persons (IDPs); removal by force of indigenous people including Fur, Tunjur, Massaleet, Zaggawa and other African sedentary farmers from their respective villages; relocation of IPDs to new areas away from their villages of origin; the repopulation of certain parts of Darfur by alien nomads from across Sudan's international borders; the use of rape of women and girls as a means of warfare as well as the abduction of women and children into forced labor and sexual slavery.
The genocidal conflict in Darfur has now endured for more than five years. As a consequence of the obdurate policy of the government of Marshal Omar Al-Bashir, numerous UN Security Council resolutions have been adopted and supported by the international community but to no avail. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has indicted two individuals responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. These two individuals remain at large. One of them, Mr. Ahmed Harun, was even promoted to higher position in government in total disregard to the ICC and UN Security Council resolution 1593 (2005). The AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) is faltering due to obstructionist policies and actions of the government of Marshal Al-Bashir.
Inviting Marshal Omar Al-Bashir to address this special session was utterly disturbing to the Darfur Diaspora community. Marshal Al-Bashir has shown intolerable intransigence and contempt for international law and continues to do so. Since the beginning of 2008, the government security forces and the Janjaweed militia have killed hundreds of people in Darfur and forcibly displaced more than 80,000. Government agents are also responsible for a series of assaults against AU and UNAMID soldiers including the injury of a UNAMID police office near Zamzam IDP camp, North Darfur, on 9th April 2008.
The Security Council could make substantive progress toward lasting peace and security in Darfur. We therefore encourage members of the Council to undertake the following:
* Ensure full and resourceful deployment of UNAMID without further delay. This protection force is largely expected to help end the growing state of impunity and lawlessness in Darfur and thereby create conditions of security allowing civilians safely and voluntarily return to their areas of origin. The deployment of UNAMID would also help put a halt and reverse the occupation of villages by foreign settlers.
* Impose immediate sanctions on the government of Sudan including a strict embargo on export of arms to the country. The sanction regime should also target high-ranking government officials for crimes against humanity, violation of mandatory UN Security Council resolutions, obstruction of UNAMID deployment and non-compliance with decisions of the International Criminal Court.
* Work out verifiable benchmarks to evaluate Sudan's compliance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, in particular resolution 1769 (2007), including creating a no fly zone, disarming the Janjaweed and creating conditions conducive to the safe return of IDPs to their villages of origin.
Dear Ambassador Kumalo,
While we appreciate the spirit of openness with which you cherish a productive dialogue with Sudan but our experience tells us that the government of Sudan would eventually make every efforts to sabotage such endeavors. The upcoming Security Council special session is another opportunity for strong and proactive measures to hold the government of Sudan accountable to its horrendous spate of violations of international human rights and humanitarian law in Darfur. It should also be an occasion for the world to renew its commitment to protect defenseless civilians in Darfur.
Sincerely,
Darfur Diaspora Association-Canada
Mahjob Abdalla
Treasurer
Darfur Association of Canada
Ismail Adam
President
Darfur Call (The Netherlands)
Ahmed M. Mohamedain
Managing Director Human Rights and Advocac
Darfur Peace and Justice Organization (Belgium)
Mohmadain Mohmad Eshak
President
Darfur People's Association in Belgium
Abdel-Rahaman Adriss
President
Darfur Relief and Documentation Centre (Switzerland)
Abdelbagi Jibril
Executive Director
Fur Association Europe
Idris Hasaballa
Chairman
Union of the People of Darfur in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland
Ishag Mekki
Vice Chairman
Darfuri Leaders Network (United States)
Consisting of:
Darfur Alert Coalition
Ibrahim Hamid
Treasurer
Darfur Association in the United States
Mahmoud Braima
President
Darfur Association of Colorado
Ahmed Adam Ali
Secretary General
Darfur Association of Illinois
Mohamed Abdel Rahman
Secretary General
Darfur Association of Nebraska
Adam Omar
Darfur Association of Texas
Bashir Gamous Abdelrasoul
Branch Leader
Darfur Community Organization (Nebraska)
Bakheit Shata
Executive Director
Darfur Human Rights Organization of the U.S.
Elgasim Salih
Vice President
Darfur People's Association of Iowa
Abdou Ashour
President
Darfur People's Association of New York
Motasim Adam
President
Darfur Rehabilitation Project, Inc.
Elnour Adam
Projects Director
Fur Association of North America
Ishag Ahmed
President
Fur Cultural Revival
Mansour Ahmed
Secretary General
Western Sudan Aid Relief in the U.S.
Abdeljabbar Seddik
President
Darfur Working Group
Badawi Osman
At-Large Members of the Darfuri Leaders Network in the U.S.
Amal Allagabo
Washington, D.C.
Niemat Ahmadi
Washington, DC
Fatima Haroun
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Suad Mansour
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Marwa Salah Eddin
Portland, Maine
Mastora Bakheit
Fort Wayne, Indiana
In a letter to South African U.N. Ambassador and current Security Council President Dumisani S. Kumalo, the DLN encouraged the council to ensure the full and rapid deployment of the UNAMID peacekeeping force; impose immediate sanctions on the Sudanese government officials accused of crimes against humanity, violation of mandatory U.N. Security Council resolutions, obstruction of UNAMID deployment and non-compliance with decisions of the International Criminal Court; and outline measurable benchmarks to evaluate Sudanese government compliance with relevant U.N. resolutions.
"Our families, friends and people in Darfur narrate to us horrifying accounts of well orchestrated atrocities and serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law on a daily basis," the letter said. "We are, therefore, obliged to remind the world of the systemic attacks against civilians."
The DLN also expressed its concern over the invitation of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to address the council at the special session. Bashir has shown contempt for international law and continues to obstruct deployment of the UNAMID peacekeeping force. Government security forces and allied janjaweed militia have, since the beginning of 2008, killed hundreds and forcibly displaced more than 80,000 Darfuris. Additionally, government forces are responsible for recent assaults against UNAMID peacekeepers.
The full text of the letter appears below:
H. E. Ambassador Dumisani S. Kumalo
President of the UN Security Council
Permanent Mission of South Africa to the United Nations
333 East 38th Street
New York, N.Y. 10016 April 16, 2008
Dear Ambassador Kumalo,
We write to you as concerned leaders of civil society organizations of the Darfuri Diaspora.
The upcoming special session of the United Nations Security Council which, among other things, is scheduled to address the situation in Darfur represents not only an opportune moment but also a compelling one for us to raise, once again, our grave concern about the perpetually murderous situation in Darfur. Our families, friends and people in Darfur narrate to us horrifying accounts of well orchestrated atrocities and serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law on a daily basis. We are, therefore, obliged to remind the world of the systemic attacks against civilians; destruction of habitats and livelihoods; targeting of internally displaced persons (IDPs); removal by force of indigenous people including Fur, Tunjur, Massaleet, Zaggawa and other African sedentary farmers from their respective villages; relocation of IPDs to new areas away from their villages of origin; the repopulation of certain parts of Darfur by alien nomads from across Sudan's international borders; the use of rape of women and girls as a means of warfare as well as the abduction of women and children into forced labor and sexual slavery.
The genocidal conflict in Darfur has now endured for more than five years. As a consequence of the obdurate policy of the government of Marshal Omar Al-Bashir, numerous UN Security Council resolutions have been adopted and supported by the international community but to no avail. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has indicted two individuals responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. These two individuals remain at large. One of them, Mr. Ahmed Harun, was even promoted to higher position in government in total disregard to the ICC and UN Security Council resolution 1593 (2005). The AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) is faltering due to obstructionist policies and actions of the government of Marshal Al-Bashir.
Inviting Marshal Omar Al-Bashir to address this special session was utterly disturbing to the Darfur Diaspora community. Marshal Al-Bashir has shown intolerable intransigence and contempt for international law and continues to do so. Since the beginning of 2008, the government security forces and the Janjaweed militia have killed hundreds of people in Darfur and forcibly displaced more than 80,000. Government agents are also responsible for a series of assaults against AU and UNAMID soldiers including the injury of a UNAMID police office near Zamzam IDP camp, North Darfur, on 9th April 2008.
The Security Council could make substantive progress toward lasting peace and security in Darfur. We therefore encourage members of the Council to undertake the following:
* Ensure full and resourceful deployment of UNAMID without further delay. This protection force is largely expected to help end the growing state of impunity and lawlessness in Darfur and thereby create conditions of security allowing civilians safely and voluntarily return to their areas of origin. The deployment of UNAMID would also help put a halt and reverse the occupation of villages by foreign settlers.
* Impose immediate sanctions on the government of Sudan including a strict embargo on export of arms to the country. The sanction regime should also target high-ranking government officials for crimes against humanity, violation of mandatory UN Security Council resolutions, obstruction of UNAMID deployment and non-compliance with decisions of the International Criminal Court.
* Work out verifiable benchmarks to evaluate Sudan's compliance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, in particular resolution 1769 (2007), including creating a no fly zone, disarming the Janjaweed and creating conditions conducive to the safe return of IDPs to their villages of origin.
Dear Ambassador Kumalo,
While we appreciate the spirit of openness with which you cherish a productive dialogue with Sudan but our experience tells us that the government of Sudan would eventually make every efforts to sabotage such endeavors. The upcoming Security Council special session is another opportunity for strong and proactive measures to hold the government of Sudan accountable to its horrendous spate of violations of international human rights and humanitarian law in Darfur. It should also be an occasion for the world to renew its commitment to protect defenseless civilians in Darfur.
Sincerely,
Darfur Diaspora Association-Canada
Mahjob Abdalla
Treasurer
Darfur Association of Canada
Ismail Adam
President
Darfur Call (The Netherlands)
Ahmed M. Mohamedain
Managing Director Human Rights and Advocac
Darfur Peace and Justice Organization (Belgium)
Mohmadain Mohmad Eshak
President
Darfur People's Association in Belgium
Abdel-Rahaman Adriss
President
Darfur Relief and Documentation Centre (Switzerland)
Abdelbagi Jibril
Executive Director
Fur Association Europe
Idris Hasaballa
Chairman
Union of the People of Darfur in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland
Ishag Mekki
Vice Chairman
Darfuri Leaders Network (United States)
Consisting of:
Darfur Alert Coalition
Ibrahim Hamid
Treasurer
Darfur Association in the United States
Mahmoud Braima
President
Darfur Association of Colorado
Ahmed Adam Ali
Secretary General
Darfur Association of Illinois
Mohamed Abdel Rahman
Secretary General
Darfur Association of Nebraska
Adam Omar
Darfur Association of Texas
Bashir Gamous Abdelrasoul
Branch Leader
Darfur Community Organization (Nebraska)
Bakheit Shata
Executive Director
Darfur Human Rights Organization of the U.S.
Elgasim Salih
Vice President
Darfur People's Association of Iowa
Abdou Ashour
President
Darfur People's Association of New York
Motasim Adam
President
Darfur Rehabilitation Project, Inc.
Elnour Adam
Projects Director
Fur Association of North America
Ishag Ahmed
President
Fur Cultural Revival
Mansour Ahmed
Secretary General
Western Sudan Aid Relief in the U.S.
Abdeljabbar Seddik
President
Darfur Working Group
Badawi Osman
At-Large Members of the Darfuri Leaders Network in the U.S.
Amal Allagabo
Washington, D.C.
Niemat Ahmadi
Washington, DC
Fatima Haroun
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Suad Mansour
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Marwa Salah Eddin
Portland, Maine
Mastora Bakheit
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Monday, April 14, 2008
It is still possible to affect change in Darfur
This month marks the 14th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide – the last time we said "never again." And as President Bush seems genuinely troubled by the similar slaughter in Darfur, here are concrete steps that he can take to make a difference:
1. Work with France to end the proxy war between Sudan and Chad and to keep Sudan from invading Chad and toppling its government. Stopping the Darfur virus from infecting the surrounding countries must be a top priority. And even if the West lacks the gumption to do much within Sudan, it should at least try to block the spread of genocide to the entire region.
France's president, Nicolas Sarkozy, is leading the way in providing a European force to stabilize Chad and Central African Republic; we should back him strongly. If Sudan dispatches additional proxy troops, France and the United States should use aircraft to strafe the invaders. But we also should push Chad's repressive president to accommodate his domestic opponents rather than imprison them.
2. Broaden the focus from "save Darfur" to "save Sudan." There is a growing risk that the war between North and South Sudan will resume in the coming months and that Sudan will shatter into pieces. The United States should try to shore up the fraying north-south peace agreement and urgently help South Sudan with an anti-aircraft capability, to deter Khartoum from striking the South. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>
1. Work with France to end the proxy war between Sudan and Chad and to keep Sudan from invading Chad and toppling its government. Stopping the Darfur virus from infecting the surrounding countries must be a top priority. And even if the West lacks the gumption to do much within Sudan, it should at least try to block the spread of genocide to the entire region.
France's president, Nicolas Sarkozy, is leading the way in providing a European force to stabilize Chad and Central African Republic; we should back him strongly. If Sudan dispatches additional proxy troops, France and the United States should use aircraft to strafe the invaders. But we also should push Chad's repressive president to accommodate his domestic opponents rather than imprison them.
2. Broaden the focus from "save Darfur" to "save Sudan." There is a growing risk that the war between North and South Sudan will resume in the coming months and that Sudan will shatter into pieces. The United States should try to shore up the fraying north-south peace agreement and urgently help South Sudan with an anti-aircraft capability, to deter Khartoum from striking the South. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Activists Mark Darfur Anniversary
LONDON (AP) — About 3,000 protesters rallied outside Sudan's Embassy in London on Sunday to demand an end to the five-year conflict and the quick deployment of an international peacekeeping force to the region.
The demonstration came on the Global Day for Darfur, a day observed by activists, celebrities and survivors across the world who are trying to raise awareness of the suffering in the western Sudanese region. The day marks the fifth anniversary of the start of the conflict.
With rock music playing, the protesters in London chanted and raised up their palms, which were painted white in a symbolic call for peace.
"Don't be Deaf to Darfur," one placard read.
Ikhlass Mohamed, a mother of three who fled the conflict in 2004, said it was vital to keep the tragedy in the public eye.
"We came here looking for peace," she said. "Physically we may have peace, but mentally we will never be at peace until we see Darfuri people having a peaceful life."
Fighting has raged in Darfur since 2003, when ethnic African tribesman took up arms, complaining of decades of neglect and discrimination by the Sudanese Arab-dominated government.
Khartoum is accused of unleashing janjaweed militia forces to commit atrocities against ethnic African communities in the fight with rebel groups — charges the government denies. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The demonstration came on the Global Day for Darfur, a day observed by activists, celebrities and survivors across the world who are trying to raise awareness of the suffering in the western Sudanese region. The day marks the fifth anniversary of the start of the conflict.
With rock music playing, the protesters in London chanted and raised up their palms, which were painted white in a symbolic call for peace.
"Don't be Deaf to Darfur," one placard read.
Ikhlass Mohamed, a mother of three who fled the conflict in 2004, said it was vital to keep the tragedy in the public eye.
"We came here looking for peace," she said. "Physically we may have peace, but mentally we will never be at peace until we see Darfuri people having a peaceful life."
Fighting has raged in Darfur since 2003, when ethnic African tribesman took up arms, complaining of decades of neglect and discrimination by the Sudanese Arab-dominated government.
Khartoum is accused of unleashing janjaweed militia forces to commit atrocities against ethnic African communities in the fight with rebel groups — charges the government denies. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Friday, April 11, 2008
Sudan: UN Security Council must censure government
'The Sudanese government cannot claim to be working to protect the people of Darfur, yet allow its proxy forces to attack civilians with impunity, as is happening,' Amnesty International said today. The organization called on the UN Security Council to strongly censure the Sudanese government following a series of orchestrated attacks on civilians in Darfur by Janjawid militia.
'The Sudanese government bears primary responsibility for these Janjawid attacks, which have left many dead and injured and left inhabitants of the area paralysed with fear and unable to carry out their daily activities,' said Amnesty International.
'The UN Security Council must insist that the Sudanese government immediately disarm these Janjawid militia, arrest them and prosecute them for the war crimes they are committing.'
The Sudanese government, in its quest for a military solution to the crisis, continues to refuse to disarm and demobilize Janjawid militia, despite international outrage.
'The Sudanese government – instead of disarming the Janjawid – is actually nurturing their influence. It continues to arm Janjawid members, integrate them into paramilitary forces, and even facilitate immunity from prosecution,' said Amnesty International.
Sunday, 6 April marked the beginning of a series of what appeared to be orchestrated attacks on the towns of El Fasher and Kabkabiya in North Darfur. Both were carried out by Janjawid militia dressed in civilian clothes and border guard uniforms who raided the towns in armed vehicles and on camel and horseback.Read more >>>>>>>
'The Sudanese government bears primary responsibility for these Janjawid attacks, which have left many dead and injured and left inhabitants of the area paralysed with fear and unable to carry out their daily activities,' said Amnesty International.
'The UN Security Council must insist that the Sudanese government immediately disarm these Janjawid militia, arrest them and prosecute them for the war crimes they are committing.'
The Sudanese government, in its quest for a military solution to the crisis, continues to refuse to disarm and demobilize Janjawid militia, despite international outrage.
'The Sudanese government – instead of disarming the Janjawid – is actually nurturing their influence. It continues to arm Janjawid members, integrate them into paramilitary forces, and even facilitate immunity from prosecution,' said Amnesty International.
Sunday, 6 April marked the beginning of a series of what appeared to be orchestrated attacks on the towns of El Fasher and Kabkabiya in North Darfur. Both were carried out by Janjawid militia dressed in civilian clothes and border guard uniforms who raided the towns in armed vehicles and on camel and horseback.Read more >>>>>>>
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Memo to Bush on Darfur
Darfur and has periodically suggested to Condoleezza Rice: Why can’t we just send troops in and take care of it? Each time, Ms. Rice patiently explains: You can’t invade a third Muslim country, especially one with oil. And so Mr. Bush backs off and does nothing.
But this week marks the 14th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide — the last time we said “never again.” And while Ms. Rice is right that we can’t send in American ground troops, there are concrete steps that President Bush can take if he wants to end his shameful passivity:
1. Work with France to end the proxy war between Sudan and Chad and to keep Sudan from invading Chad and toppling its government. Stopping the Darfur virus from infecting the surrounding countries must be a top priority. And even if the West lacks the gumption to do much within Sudan, it should at least try to block the spread of genocide to the entire region.
France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy, is leading the way in providing a European force to stabilize Chad and Central African Republic, and we should back him strongly. If Sudan dispatches additional proxy troops, France and the U.S. should use aircraft to strafe the invaders. But we should also push Chad’s repressive president to accommodate his domestic opponents rather than imprison them. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
But this week marks the 14th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide — the last time we said “never again.” And while Ms. Rice is right that we can’t send in American ground troops, there are concrete steps that President Bush can take if he wants to end his shameful passivity:
1. Work with France to end the proxy war between Sudan and Chad and to keep Sudan from invading Chad and toppling its government. Stopping the Darfur virus from infecting the surrounding countries must be a top priority. And even if the West lacks the gumption to do much within Sudan, it should at least try to block the spread of genocide to the entire region.
France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy, is leading the way in providing a European force to stabilize Chad and Central African Republic, and we should back him strongly. If Sudan dispatches additional proxy troops, France and the U.S. should use aircraft to strafe the invaders. But we should also push Chad’s repressive president to accommodate his domestic opponents rather than imprison them. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Doubts remain even with the peacekeeping forces now in Sudan's Darfur
The Editorial, NSV - After four years of agonizing pain and loss of exceptional lives, taken at the totality of genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan, the talk about all those PRO-PEACEKEEPING resolutions by the United Nations Security Council is now officially over.
Whether or not it is coincidence, the International Peacekeeping forces, today on January 1, 2008, landed on the bloodiest soils of the death-stricken Darfur region, ending one and opening another chapter in what may go down in history and genocide as the greatest attempt in bringing justice to humankind in Africa.
After years of treating the international community to the sickening denying of genocides both in Darfur and during the 21-year north-south war that claimed more 2.5 million lives in South Sudan, the government in Khartoum has finally ‘caved in’, allowing the deployment of what Bashir has blatantly been referring to as the “colonial forces.â€
Now, the questions competing for asking are: with the troops’ presence on the ground, is Darfur genocide receding to the back banner of civil wars? And was the Bashir government doing calculation during the gap between the Security Council Resolution 1706 and the SPLM-pullout from the Government of National Unity? Will the perpetrators of genocide answer at ICC? Will the Peacekeeping force have enough land for its bases? And finally, will the government in Khartoum remain selective in what UN member states can contribute to the peacekeeping force in Darfur? Read more >>>>>>>>>
Whether or not it is coincidence, the International Peacekeeping forces, today on January 1, 2008, landed on the bloodiest soils of the death-stricken Darfur region, ending one and opening another chapter in what may go down in history and genocide as the greatest attempt in bringing justice to humankind in Africa.
After years of treating the international community to the sickening denying of genocides both in Darfur and during the 21-year north-south war that claimed more 2.5 million lives in South Sudan, the government in Khartoum has finally ‘caved in’, allowing the deployment of what Bashir has blatantly been referring to as the “colonial forces.â€
Now, the questions competing for asking are: with the troops’ presence on the ground, is Darfur genocide receding to the back banner of civil wars? And was the Bashir government doing calculation during the gap between the Security Council Resolution 1706 and the SPLM-pullout from the Government of National Unity? Will the perpetrators of genocide answer at ICC? Will the Peacekeeping force have enough land for its bases? And finally, will the government in Khartoum remain selective in what UN member states can contribute to the peacekeeping force in Darfur? Read more >>>>>>>>>
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
China and Darfur
Yesterday afternoon, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Nicholas D. Kristof delivered a lecture on the current human rights violations in Sudan and China’s controversial involvement in the continuation of the civil conflict. The New York Times columnist has visited the war-torn region of Darfur in Sudan on several occasions and urges the international community — especially Americans — to focus their attention on providing more aid, including political relief, in hope of ending the genocide.
Kristof began the lecture by presenting a slide show of pictures taken during his visits to the Darfur region. The images depicted scenes of horror and turmoil. With each picture, Kristof related personal accounts from victims and stories of torture, forced slavery, mutilation, rape and murder. He explained that the Janjaweed, an Arab militia supported by the Sudanese government, has been committing genocide against many African tribes due to ethnic differences and conflicts over the scarce primary resources in Darfur.
“You drive around hour after hour and you don’t see live people besides the Janjaweed. Rural parts of Darfur have been completely obliterated. This year alone, 1,000 people a day have been displaced,” Kristof said.
He went on to describe his experiences and observations as a journalist in Darfur. He was particularly angered by the Sudanese government’s support of the Janjaweed and its denial of involvement in the genocide.
“The Sudanese government acknowledges that tribes are burning and people are being killed, but they say it's tribal conflict. However, at the various road blocks and checkpoints, there were Janjaweed militants that were just being waved straight through. This isn’t just tribal warfare, this is government warfare,” Kristof said. Read more >>>>>>>>
Kristof began the lecture by presenting a slide show of pictures taken during his visits to the Darfur region. The images depicted scenes of horror and turmoil. With each picture, Kristof related personal accounts from victims and stories of torture, forced slavery, mutilation, rape and murder. He explained that the Janjaweed, an Arab militia supported by the Sudanese government, has been committing genocide against many African tribes due to ethnic differences and conflicts over the scarce primary resources in Darfur.
“You drive around hour after hour and you don’t see live people besides the Janjaweed. Rural parts of Darfur have been completely obliterated. This year alone, 1,000 people a day have been displaced,” Kristof said.
He went on to describe his experiences and observations as a journalist in Darfur. He was particularly angered by the Sudanese government’s support of the Janjaweed and its denial of involvement in the genocide.
“The Sudanese government acknowledges that tribes are burning and people are being killed, but they say it's tribal conflict. However, at the various road blocks and checkpoints, there were Janjaweed militants that were just being waved straight through. This isn’t just tribal warfare, this is government warfare,” Kristof said. Read more >>>>>>>>
Monday, April 07, 2008
Pro-Khartoum militias loot Darfur town, kill one
KHARTOUM, April 6 (Reuters) - Pro-Khartoum "Janjaweed" militias ran riot in Darfur's main town of el-Fasher on Sunday, killing one person, injuring four others and looting shops in the market, former Darfur rebels said.
"The militias which belong to the government known as the Janjaweed did not get their money from the government and they looted the market where the (army) and the police could not control them," said Mohammed Dirbeen, military spokesman of the Sudan Liberation Movement's (SLM) Minnawi faction.
SLM-Minnawi, named after its leader Minni Arcua Minnawi, was the only one of three rebel factions to sign a 2006 Darfur peace deal and join Khartoum's government. But little of the deal has been implemented, causing distrust between the parties.
"They killed one citizen and injured four," Dirbeen said, adding the militiamen tried but failed to loot local banks. He was speaking from Khartoum after being briefed by colleagues in el-Fasher. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
"The militias which belong to the government known as the Janjaweed did not get their money from the government and they looted the market where the (army) and the police could not control them," said Mohammed Dirbeen, military spokesman of the Sudan Liberation Movement's (SLM) Minnawi faction.
SLM-Minnawi, named after its leader Minni Arcua Minnawi, was the only one of three rebel factions to sign a 2006 Darfur peace deal and join Khartoum's government. But little of the deal has been implemented, causing distrust between the parties.
"They killed one citizen and injured four," Dirbeen said, adding the militiamen tried but failed to loot local banks. He was speaking from Khartoum after being briefed by colleagues in el-Fasher. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Humanitarian Conditions in Darfur, Two Months Before the Rainy Season
This overview attempts to bring together the most substantial data and reports about the nature and scale of the current humanitarian crisis in Darfur, and to put this information within the context of the immensely threatening environment facing aid workers throughout the region. It draws on a range of materials, including the most recent UN Darfur Humanitarian Profile (No. 30, reflecting conditions as of January 1, 2008). The sources for data, surveys, and anecdotal information are diverse, both on the ground in Darfur and within the international humanitarian community. Much information was provided exclusively on a confidential basis; non-confidential information comes chiefly from reports in the public domain, or public interviews by humanitarian officials.
It must be emphasized that there is a highly significant gap in the humanitarian data available concerning the scale of malnutrition in Darfur. Critical data for Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) and other malnutrition indicators (e.g., Mid-upper Arm Circumference [MUAC]) are simply not available, even on a confidential basis. Although some individual humanitarian workers and organizations were willing to provide anecdotal information, on a highly confidential basis, this is clearly inadequate. The reason consistently given for this extraordinary lacuna in humanitarian indicators was the refusal of Khartoum’s “Humanitarian Aid Commission” (HAC) to permit either the gathering or dissemination of data bearing on malnutrition. This highly consequential decision, made by a bureaucratic extension of the very regime that has done so much to engineer the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, deserves much greater highlighting. Read more >>>>>>>>
It must be emphasized that there is a highly significant gap in the humanitarian data available concerning the scale of malnutrition in Darfur. Critical data for Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) and other malnutrition indicators (e.g., Mid-upper Arm Circumference [MUAC]) are simply not available, even on a confidential basis. Although some individual humanitarian workers and organizations were willing to provide anecdotal information, on a highly confidential basis, this is clearly inadequate. The reason consistently given for this extraordinary lacuna in humanitarian indicators was the refusal of Khartoum’s “Humanitarian Aid Commission” (HAC) to permit either the gathering or dissemination of data bearing on malnutrition. This highly consequential decision, made by a bureaucratic extension of the very regime that has done so much to engineer the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, deserves much greater highlighting. Read more >>>>>>>>
Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on the Anniversary of the referral of the situation in Darfur/Sudan to the ICC
Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on the Anniversary of the referral of the situation in Darfur/Sudan to the ICC
On 31 March 2005 the United Nations Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court. Under the terms of Resolution 1593 (2005) the Security Council stated that the "Government of Sudan and all other parties to the conflict in Darfur shall cooperate fully and provide any necessary assistance to the Court and the prosecutor."
On 27 April 2007 the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Ahmed Muhammad Haroun, current minister for humanitarian affairs and for former Janjaweed militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known as "Ali Kosheib" in connection with alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
The EU expresses its profound dismay with the Government of Sudan's continued failure to comply with its obligations under UNSC Resolution 1593 including its refusal to arrest and surrender these men to the ICC for prosecution, much less allow the ICC to question them. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
On 31 March 2005 the United Nations Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court. Under the terms of Resolution 1593 (2005) the Security Council stated that the "Government of Sudan and all other parties to the conflict in Darfur shall cooperate fully and provide any necessary assistance to the Court and the prosecutor."
On 27 April 2007 the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Ahmed Muhammad Haroun, current minister for humanitarian affairs and for former Janjaweed militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known as "Ali Kosheib" in connection with alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
The EU expresses its profound dismay with the Government of Sudan's continued failure to comply with its obligations under UNSC Resolution 1593 including its refusal to arrest and surrender these men to the ICC for prosecution, much less allow the ICC to question them. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Friday, April 04, 2008
Darfur is in worse shape than four years ago, Ban says
New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Friday that the conditions in Sudan's war-torn western region of Darfur have worsened, four years after the UN Security Council first turned its attention on the ethnic conflict there.
'The situation remains grim today, as then, if not worse,' Ban said in assessing the situation. 'Violence targeting civilians, including women and girls, continues at alarming levels with no accountability, or end, in sight.'
Of Darfur's population of 4.27 million, a total of 2.45 million people have been displaced by the fighting and continue to suffer from the conflict pitting black African rebel groups against Arab militias backed by the government in Khartoum. More than 300,000 people have died since the conflict erupted in 2003.
Ban in a statement said more than 100,000 Darfurians have been forced to flee the violence so far this year. Read more>>>>>>>>>>
'The situation remains grim today, as then, if not worse,' Ban said in assessing the situation. 'Violence targeting civilians, including women and girls, continues at alarming levels with no accountability, or end, in sight.'
Of Darfur's population of 4.27 million, a total of 2.45 million people have been displaced by the fighting and continue to suffer from the conflict pitting black African rebel groups against Arab militias backed by the government in Khartoum. More than 300,000 people have died since the conflict erupted in 2003.
Ban in a statement said more than 100,000 Darfurians have been forced to flee the violence so far this year. Read more>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Darfur atrocities should dog Beijing
The Games should go on, as should the protests
Last week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel became the first world leader to announce that she would not attend the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Though the German government gave no reason, Ms. Merkel recently caused sparks with the Chinese leadership by meeting publicly with the Dalai Lama amid Beijing's brutal crackdown in Tibet.
European governments are sending signals that, should the repression continue, Ms. Merkel will not be staying home alone.
As if China doesn't have enough problems managing its Tibet crisis, Beijing is about to have its brutal complicity in the Darfur atrocities brought to the American public's attention in a series of high-profile demonstrations intended to brand the summer games the "Genocide Olympics." True, it's unfair to indelibly stain the Olympic Games with the blood of Darfurians, but it's well worth countering Beijing's Olympics PR offensive with the ugly truth about its key role in the ongoing African genocide.
Chinese money and influence make possible the savage war Sudan's militant Islamist government is waging against its own people in Darfur province. China is Sudan's largest trading partner, is its arms dealer and last year gave President Omar al-Bashir money to build a new palace. And China runs interference for the Sudanese in the United Nations, using its Security Council veto to stave off sanctions against the nation for raping, pillaging and slaughtering more than 200,000 of its own people. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Last week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel became the first world leader to announce that she would not attend the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Though the German government gave no reason, Ms. Merkel recently caused sparks with the Chinese leadership by meeting publicly with the Dalai Lama amid Beijing's brutal crackdown in Tibet.
European governments are sending signals that, should the repression continue, Ms. Merkel will not be staying home alone.
As if China doesn't have enough problems managing its Tibet crisis, Beijing is about to have its brutal complicity in the Darfur atrocities brought to the American public's attention in a series of high-profile demonstrations intended to brand the summer games the "Genocide Olympics." True, it's unfair to indelibly stain the Olympic Games with the blood of Darfurians, but it's well worth countering Beijing's Olympics PR offensive with the ugly truth about its key role in the ongoing African genocide.
Chinese money and influence make possible the savage war Sudan's militant Islamist government is waging against its own people in Darfur province. China is Sudan's largest trading partner, is its arms dealer and last year gave President Omar al-Bashir money to build a new palace. And China runs interference for the Sudanese in the United Nations, using its Security Council veto to stave off sanctions against the nation for raping, pillaging and slaughtering more than 200,000 of its own people. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sudan's New Army Deputy Chief on Bush's Terror List
Sudan's New Army Deputy Chief on Bush's Terror List
Written by The Media Line Staff
Published Thursday, April 03, 2008
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A major reshuffle in Sudan's army command includes a general, who was added last year to the United States' sanctions list for his direct contribution to the conflict in Darfur.
Gen. 'Awwad Muhammad Ahmad Ebni (aka 'Awwad Muhammad Bin Oaf), the former head of Military Intelligence and Security, was promoted to the position of deputy chief of the Joint Staff.
According to the U.S. administration, Ebni acted as liaison between the Sudanese government and the government-supported Janjaweed armed forces, which have attacked civilians in the region. Ebni was also accused by the U.S. of providing the Janjaweed with logistical support, and of personally directing attacks.
Last January Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir appointed Mousa Hilal, a suspected Janjaweed leader as special adviser to the Ministry of Federal Government.
Hilal, leader of the Mahamid clan in Darfur, was questioned in 2005 by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and admitted to recruiting militias on behalf of Sudan's central government. The Darfurian leader was named in an Internmational Criminal Court report in February 2007 as making a "racist" speech in July 2003. However, he was not named as a war crime suspect.
The United Nations Security Council imposed travel and financial sanctions on Hilal in April 2006. United States President George W. Bush issued an executive order imposing similar sanctions on him. Read more >>>>>>>>
Written by The Media Line Staff
Published Thursday, April 03, 2008
E-Mail This
Printer-Friendly
Archives
A major reshuffle in Sudan's army command includes a general, who was added last year to the United States' sanctions list for his direct contribution to the conflict in Darfur.
Gen. 'Awwad Muhammad Ahmad Ebni (aka 'Awwad Muhammad Bin Oaf), the former head of Military Intelligence and Security, was promoted to the position of deputy chief of the Joint Staff.
According to the U.S. administration, Ebni acted as liaison between the Sudanese government and the government-supported Janjaweed armed forces, which have attacked civilians in the region. Ebni was also accused by the U.S. of providing the Janjaweed with logistical support, and of personally directing attacks.
Last January Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir appointed Mousa Hilal, a suspected Janjaweed leader as special adviser to the Ministry of Federal Government.
Hilal, leader of the Mahamid clan in Darfur, was questioned in 2005 by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and admitted to recruiting militias on behalf of Sudan's central government. The Darfurian leader was named in an Internmational Criminal Court report in February 2007 as making a "racist" speech in July 2003. However, he was not named as a war crime suspect.
The United Nations Security Council imposed travel and financial sanctions on Hilal in April 2006. United States President George W. Bush issued an executive order imposing similar sanctions on him. Read more >>>>>>>>
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
'Sanctions on Sudan now'
Human Rights Watch's EU director Lotte Leicht says without international pressure the victims of Darfur will never see justice and they face even more abuses
Shortly after taking office, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown stood before the United Nations General Assembly and declared the situation in Darfur to be the “greatest humanitarian disaster” facing the world today. He sent a message to Darfur that “it is time for change”.
Brown pledged to place sanctions on the Sudanese government if the killings of civilians in Darfur did not stop. Nine months later, people are still dying and suffering - apparently, Khartoum did not get the message. It is time to send it with a new messenger – sanctions.
While Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy should be applauded for their efforts last year which resulted in the adoption of a United Nations resolution approving the deployment of a 26,000 strong peacekeeping force to Sudan, President Bashir has managed to obstruct and delay this deployment.
The UK and its EU partners have responded to Bashir’s continued stonewalling with only kid-gloves and toothless threats. Despite pledges to the contrary, the EU has still not imposed sanctions to encourage Bashir’s compliance. Without firmer pressure on Khartoum, the victims of Darfur will never see justice, and their persecutors will feel free to redouble their murderous ways.
Many in Europe have never heard of Ahmed Haroun, but for the villagers of Bindisi, Kodoom, Arawala and Mukjar, he is their worst nightmare. Four years ago, Haroun was State Minister of the Interior responsible for Darfur’s security during the time that Sudanese government forces and their allied Janjaweed militias carried out a brutal scorched-earth campaign of killings, rape, destruction and displacement.
Haroun and those under his watch are alleged to have murdered hundreds, raped women and young girls, destroyed property, and forcibly removed thousands from their homes. Some of the crimes were carried out by a militia leader named Ali Mohammed Ali, also known as “Ali Kosheib,” who received orders from Haroun.
Since then, the International Criminal Court has charged Ahmed Haroun and “Ali Kosheib” with 51 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, rape, persecution and forcible transfer of population. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Shortly after taking office, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown stood before the United Nations General Assembly and declared the situation in Darfur to be the “greatest humanitarian disaster” facing the world today. He sent a message to Darfur that “it is time for change”.
Brown pledged to place sanctions on the Sudanese government if the killings of civilians in Darfur did not stop. Nine months later, people are still dying and suffering - apparently, Khartoum did not get the message. It is time to send it with a new messenger – sanctions.
While Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy should be applauded for their efforts last year which resulted in the adoption of a United Nations resolution approving the deployment of a 26,000 strong peacekeeping force to Sudan, President Bashir has managed to obstruct and delay this deployment.
The UK and its EU partners have responded to Bashir’s continued stonewalling with only kid-gloves and toothless threats. Despite pledges to the contrary, the EU has still not imposed sanctions to encourage Bashir’s compliance. Without firmer pressure on Khartoum, the victims of Darfur will never see justice, and their persecutors will feel free to redouble their murderous ways.
Many in Europe have never heard of Ahmed Haroun, but for the villagers of Bindisi, Kodoom, Arawala and Mukjar, he is their worst nightmare. Four years ago, Haroun was State Minister of the Interior responsible for Darfur’s security during the time that Sudanese government forces and their allied Janjaweed militias carried out a brutal scorched-earth campaign of killings, rape, destruction and displacement.
Haroun and those under his watch are alleged to have murdered hundreds, raped women and young girls, destroyed property, and forcibly removed thousands from their homes. Some of the crimes were carried out by a militia leader named Ali Mohammed Ali, also known as “Ali Kosheib,” who received orders from Haroun.
Since then, the International Criminal Court has charged Ahmed Haroun and “Ali Kosheib” with 51 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, rape, persecution and forcible transfer of population. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, March 30, 2008
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - Australia's new prime minister is accusing Sudan's government of blocking deployment of a U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force to help end a five-year conflict in Darfur that's killed more than 200,000 people.
After meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Kevin Rudd called Darfur "a continuing humanitarian tragedy" and said the Security Council needs to hold Sudan's government to account.
Rudd says he's agreed to send nine military officers to assist with preparations for the deployment of the force in Darfur, and that Australia would provide $4.58 million in humanitarian aid. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
After meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Kevin Rudd called Darfur "a continuing humanitarian tragedy" and said the Security Council needs to hold Sudan's government to account.
Rudd says he's agreed to send nine military officers to assist with preparations for the deployment of the force in Darfur, and that Australia would provide $4.58 million in humanitarian aid. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Lost in the Sahel
By Paul Salopek
Photograph by Pascal Maitre
Darfur—the road to Furawiya
The road was not really a road. Its two ruts led into Darfur, to the war in western Sudan, from the unmarked border of Chad. So much of the Sahel was like this—unmapped, invisible, yet a boundary nonetheless. The land stretched away in a monotony of gravel pans and dried grasses so translucent—so brittle—they seemed made of blown glass. The iron horizons never budged. Yet we were crossing boundaries with every passing hour, mostly without seeing them.
After I was arrested and imprisoned in Darfur, an American soldier told me, shaking his head in disgust, “You fly over this place and all you see is miles and miles of nothing.” But that was an outsider’s delusion. Every outcrop and plain was parsed by unseen tangents, lines, ghostly demarcations. They portioned off the claims of tribes, individuals, clans. They bulged and recoiled according to war and season. No-go zones encircled water holes. Certain unseen lines, masars, dictated the migration routes of nomads. There was nothing haphazard about any of this. To cross one line or to venture too far from another might invite retribution, even death. And that was the ultimate line of them all in the Sahel: the one between knowing and ignorance. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
China's Wandering Eye
Ominous news from cyberspace: Darfur advocacy groups in the United States--collectively without rival in shaping international efforts to halt ethnically targeted violence in western Sudan and eastern Chad--have been the target of cyber-espionage that most likely leads back to the Chinese government.
Beijing is angry because it is the focus of a large and intense shaming campaign highlighting the fact that China is both host of the 2008 Olympic Games--and thus custodian of the Games's various ideals--as well as complicit in the Darfur genocide by way of its support for the brutal regime in Khartoum. What was to have been Beijing's post-Tiananmen Square coming out party is rapidly becoming a public relations nightmare. And so the Chinese government has sanctioned cyber-espionage against the advocacy organizations most responsible for this shaming campaign. Read more >>>>>
Beijing is angry because it is the focus of a large and intense shaming campaign highlighting the fact that China is both host of the 2008 Olympic Games--and thus custodian of the Games's various ideals--as well as complicit in the Darfur genocide by way of its support for the brutal regime in Khartoum. What was to have been Beijing's post-Tiananmen Square coming out party is rapidly becoming a public relations nightmare. And so the Chinese government has sanctioned cyber-espionage against the advocacy organizations most responsible for this shaming campaign. Read more >>>>>
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Make Sudan an Offer It Can’t Refuse
DESPITE almost 1.5 million bombing sorties flown against Germany during the Second World War, the United States and Britain failed for lack of trying to destroy the system of transport that fed the gas chambers and crematoria. Thirty-five years later, America did not, despite its unquestioned naval supremacy, protect the Vietnamese boat people. That we and our two allies capable of projecting power, France and Britain, are now distracted and divided by the wars in the Middle East is terribly unfortunate for the people of Darfur.
The genocide there is thus an unattended stepchild left to well-meaning groups and individuals who further sap the possibility of decisive action by directing attention to delicate measures of relief and equally fragile diplomacy. Blankets are necessary, but they will not stop the razing of villages. As Sudan brazenly defies, if not the world’s will, then, its wishes, and the death toll closes upon half a million, the pity is that the people of Darfur can in fact be saved. In concert with our allies or entirely alone, we have the military potential to accomplish this.
The multinational troops in Darfur have neither the training nor the mobility to defend the population adequately. Seventy-eight countries, each with its own rules of engagement, are represented in what is less a rescue mission than a camping trip to the Tower of Babel. A possibly influential force is developing in Chad, where the European Union, soon to be supplemented by Russian helicopters, will deploy weakly to defend a line drawn across largely empty desert. But why not cross that line? Violating sovereignty is a matter of immense consequence and gravity. Then again, so is genocide. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The genocide there is thus an unattended stepchild left to well-meaning groups and individuals who further sap the possibility of decisive action by directing attention to delicate measures of relief and equally fragile diplomacy. Blankets are necessary, but they will not stop the razing of villages. As Sudan brazenly defies, if not the world’s will, then, its wishes, and the death toll closes upon half a million, the pity is that the people of Darfur can in fact be saved. In concert with our allies or entirely alone, we have the military potential to accomplish this.
The multinational troops in Darfur have neither the training nor the mobility to defend the population adequately. Seventy-eight countries, each with its own rules of engagement, are represented in what is less a rescue mission than a camping trip to the Tower of Babel. A possibly influential force is developing in Chad, where the European Union, soon to be supplemented by Russian helicopters, will deploy weakly to defend a line drawn across largely empty desert. But why not cross that line? Violating sovereignty is a matter of immense consequence and gravity. Then again, so is genocide. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Monday, March 24, 2008
Three Darfur war crimes suspects inaugurate new health facilities
(KHARTOUM) — Three Sudanese officials accused of taking part in the Darfur war crimes inaugurated health facilities in the town of Merowe 350 km north of the capital Khartoum.
Salah Gosh (left); Ahmed Haroun (Center); Musa Hilal (right) The officials included Salah Gosh, the head of Sudan’s National Security and Intelligence Service; Ahmed Haroun, minister of state for humanitarian affairs and Musa Hilal adviser to the ministry of Federal Affairs.
Gosh has been accused by human rights group of being one of the Sudanese officials responsible for orchestrating the war crimes in Darfur and counter insurgency campaign. He was identified by the UN panel of experts as an individual who should be sanctioned.
Musa Hilal, leader of the Darfurian Arab Mahameed clan, has been named by numerous eyewitnesses in Darfur as leading terror campaign against the African tribes in the war ravaged region. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Darfur peacekeeping force at risk of failing, already
ABU SUROUJ, Sudan: As Darfur smolders in the aftermath of a new government offensive, a long-sought peacekeeping force, expected to be the world's largest, is in danger of failing even before it begins its mission because of bureaucratic delays, stonewalling by the Sudanese government and reluctance from troop-contributing countries to send peacekeeping forces into an active conflict.
The force, which officially took over from an overstretched and exhausted African Union force in Darfur on Jan. 1, has just over 9,000 of an expected 26,000 soldiers and police officers, and will not fully deploy until the end of the year, United Nation officials said.
Even the troops that are in place, the old African Union force plus two other battalions, lack essential equipment - like sufficient armored personnel carriers and helicopters - to carry out even the most rudimentary of peacekeeping tasks. Some even had to buy their own paint to turn their green helmets United Nations blue, peacekeepers here said. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, March 23, 2008
If China wants attention, it should show it in Darfur
China's leaders may believe the chance for their country to gain global respect lies in the Olympic Games in Beijing, but their real chance to impress lies in Darfur.
China is the largest trading partner of the African nation Sudan and potentially its most influential ally. In November, China sent a team of military engineers to Darfur, the region of Sudan that has seen major bloodshed and turmoil the past five years. China has publicly voiced "grave concerns" about the violence in Darfur and says it is interested in stepping up efforts for an international peacekeeping force there.
If China wants to gain the world's attention, Darfur presents it with an excellent opportunity. As a nation that has sold arms to Sudan and is looking to gain a diplomatic and economic foothold elsewhere, the plight of Darfur gives China the chance to show just how serious it is about becoming a more engaged, influential player — for peace, not conflict. The world already knows about China's might. Now is the time to see its will. Read More >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
China is the largest trading partner of the African nation Sudan and potentially its most influential ally. In November, China sent a team of military engineers to Darfur, the region of Sudan that has seen major bloodshed and turmoil the past five years. China has publicly voiced "grave concerns" about the violence in Darfur and says it is interested in stepping up efforts for an international peacekeeping force there.
If China wants to gain the world's attention, Darfur presents it with an excellent opportunity. As a nation that has sold arms to Sudan and is looking to gain a diplomatic and economic foothold elsewhere, the plight of Darfur gives China the chance to show just how serious it is about becoming a more engaged, influential player — for peace, not conflict. The world already knows about China's might. Now is the time to see its will. Read More >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Deadly Attacks in West Darfur Include Rape and Breach International Law
A report describes extensive looting during and after the attacks, and catalogs "consistent and credible accounts" of rape committed by armed men in uniform.
(DARFUR) - Recent attacks by militias and the Sudanese army on four villages in West Darfur that left at least 115 people dead and some 30,000 displaced violated international humanitarian and human rights law, a United Nations report released today has found.
The report, issued jointly by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), describes attacks on four villages north of El Geneina, the regional capital.
The attacks on the villages of Saraf Jidad, Sirba, Silea and Abu Suruj were carried out as part of a push by the Sudanese Government in late January and early February to drive back an insurgent group, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).
The February 8th attacks involved aerial bombardments by helicopter gun ships and fixed-wing aircraft, accompanied by ground offensives by soldiers and armed militia on horses and camels, the report says.
The report describes extensive looting during and after the attacks, and catalogs “consistent and credible accounts” of rape committed by armed men in uniform.
"These actions violated the principle of distinction stated in international humanitarian law, failing to distinguish between civilian objects and military objective," the report concludes.
"Moreover, the scale of destruction of civilian property, including objects indispensable for the survival of the civilian population, suggests that the damage was a deliberate and integral part of a military strategy," it adds. Read more >>>>>>>
(DARFUR) - Recent attacks by militias and the Sudanese army on four villages in West Darfur that left at least 115 people dead and some 30,000 displaced violated international humanitarian and human rights law, a United Nations report released today has found.
The report, issued jointly by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), describes attacks on four villages north of El Geneina, the regional capital.
The attacks on the villages of Saraf Jidad, Sirba, Silea and Abu Suruj were carried out as part of a push by the Sudanese Government in late January and early February to drive back an insurgent group, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).
The February 8th attacks involved aerial bombardments by helicopter gun ships and fixed-wing aircraft, accompanied by ground offensives by soldiers and armed militia on horses and camels, the report says.
The report describes extensive looting during and after the attacks, and catalogs “consistent and credible accounts” of rape committed by armed men in uniform.
"These actions violated the principle of distinction stated in international humanitarian law, failing to distinguish between civilian objects and military objective," the report concludes.
"Moreover, the scale of destruction of civilian property, including objects indispensable for the survival of the civilian population, suggests that the damage was a deliberate and integral part of a military strategy," it adds. Read more >>>>>>>
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Humanitarian Crisis in Darfur Continues
(19 Mar 08 -RV) People in Sudan’s Darfur region are at risk of starvation as security in the area continues to worsen. With numerous supply trucks hijacked and many drivers missing, the UN’s World Food Programme says food deliveries will become increasingly challenging. WFP spokesperson Emilia Casella notes that although the situation has not yet affected the daily rations to refugees, food deliveries have been cut in half..More >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Darfur envoys seek more peacekeeping support
By Thomas Atkins
GENEVA, March 18 (Reuters) - U.N. and African peace envoys on Tuesday urged donor nations to speed support to peacekeepers in war-torn Darfur, and called on Chad and Sudan to work harder to cool border tensions exacerbating the long-running conflict.
"If we can get a quicker deployment of the peacekeeping troops then we can convey the message that yes, the security is increasing," said Jan Eliasson, the U.N. special envoy to Darfur.
"For peacekeeping to be successful there has to be a peace to keep," he told a news briefing at the close of two-day talks at the United Nations offices in Geneva.
Efforts to end the conflict in which some 200,000 people are estimated to have died have been dogged by tribal clashes, tensions between Chad and Sudan, divergent interests by the international community and fragmented rebel demands.
Darfur has been beset by unrest since early 2003 when mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing the central government of neglect. More story >>>>>>
GENEVA, March 18 (Reuters) - U.N. and African peace envoys on Tuesday urged donor nations to speed support to peacekeepers in war-torn Darfur, and called on Chad and Sudan to work harder to cool border tensions exacerbating the long-running conflict.
"If we can get a quicker deployment of the peacekeeping troops then we can convey the message that yes, the security is increasing," said Jan Eliasson, the U.N. special envoy to Darfur.
"For peacekeeping to be successful there has to be a peace to keep," he told a news briefing at the close of two-day talks at the United Nations offices in Geneva.
Efforts to end the conflict in which some 200,000 people are estimated to have died have been dogged by tribal clashes, tensions between Chad and Sudan, divergent interests by the international community and fragmented rebel demands.
Darfur has been beset by unrest since early 2003 when mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing the central government of neglect. More story >>>>>>
Monday, March 17, 2008
EU boycotts China oil firm over funding of Darfur regime
By Kim Sengupta
Monday, 17 March 2008
The European Parliament has disinvested in a firm accused of being one of the chief bankrollers of the Sudanese regime's military campaign in Darfur after pressure from MEPs and human rights activists.
The Independent can reveal that, in a significant step in boycotting firms whose revenues are said to fuel the genocide, the EU has sold its shares in the Chinese oil giant PetroChina/ CNPC. The move follows revelations that MEPs' pension funds continued to be invested in the company, despite widespread criticism of Chinese support for the regime in Khartoum.
The decision strengthens the international campaign to apply pressure on the Sudanese government over the continuing killings, rapes and forced evictions in Darfur by its own troops and the Janjaweed militia which colludes with state forces.
China is the foremost foreign investor in Sudan and a main supplier of weapons. It buys two thirds of Sudanese oil output.
Eighty Nobel laureates, politicians and artists have written to the Chinese President Hu Jintao urging greater action on Darfur. The actors George Clooney and Mia Farrow, as well as the film director Steven Spielberg, who recently withdrew from his role as artistic director of the Beijing Olympics, have been among those highlighting the suffering resulting from some of the Chinese-linked revenue.
The Independent revealed last week that the conflict in Darfur had entered a violent and deadly new phase. Internal reports by humanitarian agencies operating in the region reveal that the active Sudanese government-backed military phase of the conflict, thought to have ended early in 2005, has resumed, with horrifying consequences. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Monday, 17 March 2008
The European Parliament has disinvested in a firm accused of being one of the chief bankrollers of the Sudanese regime's military campaign in Darfur after pressure from MEPs and human rights activists.
The Independent can reveal that, in a significant step in boycotting firms whose revenues are said to fuel the genocide, the EU has sold its shares in the Chinese oil giant PetroChina/ CNPC. The move follows revelations that MEPs' pension funds continued to be invested in the company, despite widespread criticism of Chinese support for the regime in Khartoum.
The decision strengthens the international campaign to apply pressure on the Sudanese government over the continuing killings, rapes and forced evictions in Darfur by its own troops and the Janjaweed militia which colludes with state forces.
China is the foremost foreign investor in Sudan and a main supplier of weapons. It buys two thirds of Sudanese oil output.
Eighty Nobel laureates, politicians and artists have written to the Chinese President Hu Jintao urging greater action on Darfur. The actors George Clooney and Mia Farrow, as well as the film director Steven Spielberg, who recently withdrew from his role as artistic director of the Beijing Olympics, have been among those highlighting the suffering resulting from some of the Chinese-linked revenue.
The Independent revealed last week that the conflict in Darfur had entered a violent and deadly new phase. Internal reports by humanitarian agencies operating in the region reveal that the active Sudanese government-backed military phase of the conflict, thought to have ended early in 2005, has resumed, with horrifying consequences. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Oil for China, Guns for Darfur
A new report by a nongovernmental organization links Beijing's access to Sudan's oil with China's sale of small arms used in the Darfur conflict
by Moira Herbst
China's thirst for oil is causing bloodshed. So says New York-based nongovernmental organization Human Rights First, which on Mar. 13 released a report linking China's rising imports of Sudanese oil with sales of Chinese small weapons to Khartoum, used to further the deadly conflict in the western region of Darfur. The report is part of a broader campaign called Made in China: Stop Arms Sales to Sudan, timed to coincide with the runup to the Beijing Olympics in August. "China's huge appetite for oil from Sudan filled Khartoum's coffers, enabling Sudan to buy Chinese arms," says Betsy Apple, a Human Rights First program director and author of the report. "It's a toxic oil-for-arms relationship." Apple says the group is calling for China to halt arms sales to Sudan immediately. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>
by Moira Herbst
China's thirst for oil is causing bloodshed. So says New York-based nongovernmental organization Human Rights First, which on Mar. 13 released a report linking China's rising imports of Sudanese oil with sales of Chinese small weapons to Khartoum, used to further the deadly conflict in the western region of Darfur. The report is part of a broader campaign called Made in China: Stop Arms Sales to Sudan, timed to coincide with the runup to the Beijing Olympics in August. "China's huge appetite for oil from Sudan filled Khartoum's coffers, enabling Sudan to buy Chinese arms," says Betsy Apple, a Human Rights First program director and author of the report. "It's a toxic oil-for-arms relationship." Apple says the group is calling for China to halt arms sales to Sudan immediately. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>
Pressure on China to act
THE bloodshed in Darfur, rather than abating after UN peacekeepers finally deployed to the war-torn region in western Sudan earlier this year, has instead gotten worse.
The tragedy is that such news should come as no surprise. Sudan, which has thumbed its nose at the world for five years, either ignoring or undermining efforts by the international community to stop government-backed, murderous attacks on civilians in Darfur, has recently stepped up assaults, again, on innocent inhabitants in the region. Observers say the level of violence – including murder, rape, looting and destruction of property – is now as bad as its worst levels, seen back in 2003 and 2004.
For Sudan’s government, embroiled in a brutal war with rebels from the Darfur region, the world’s reluctance to press the regime with more than heated words and half-hearted attempts to intervene have emboldened the authorities. Despite the carnage – which some experts now say has cost 400,000 lives and displaced more than three million people – the UN has so far been able to field just over 9,000 members of a planned contingent of 26,000. And most of those now on the ground representing UNAMID (United Nations African Union Mission to Darfur) have come from the previous, and largely ineffective, African Union force of some 7,500 soldiers. Read more >>>>
The tragedy is that such news should come as no surprise. Sudan, which has thumbed its nose at the world for five years, either ignoring or undermining efforts by the international community to stop government-backed, murderous attacks on civilians in Darfur, has recently stepped up assaults, again, on innocent inhabitants in the region. Observers say the level of violence – including murder, rape, looting and destruction of property – is now as bad as its worst levels, seen back in 2003 and 2004.
For Sudan’s government, embroiled in a brutal war with rebels from the Darfur region, the world’s reluctance to press the regime with more than heated words and half-hearted attempts to intervene have emboldened the authorities. Despite the carnage – which some experts now say has cost 400,000 lives and displaced more than three million people – the UN has so far been able to field just over 9,000 members of a planned contingent of 26,000. And most of those now on the ground representing UNAMID (United Nations African Union Mission to Darfur) have come from the previous, and largely ineffective, African Union force of some 7,500 soldiers. Read more >>>>
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
We were armed by Sudan, say Darfur killers
By Nima El Bagir
Adjusting his camouflage turban, the commander pointed at the weapons and vehicles inside his camp in Sudan's war-torn region of Darfur.
Telegraph TV: Preview of 'Unreported World: Meet the Janjaweed'
"All the hardware that we have - where did we get it from?" said Mohammed Hamdan. "Do you think we just magicked it out of the air? It belongs to the government."
With those words, he destroyed a myth carefully crafted by Sudan's regime.
Hamdan commands hundreds of gunmen from the notorious Janjaweed militia, which human rights groups blame for countless atrocities in Darfur's civil war.
Instead, Mr Bashir has denounced them as "bandits and thieves" and denied giving them any arms or supplies.
Yet Hamdan spoke near a Toyota Land Cruiser, mounted with a heavy machinegun, and his fighters were armed with mortars, anti-aircraft guns and Kalashnikov rifles. "The weapons, the cars, all that you see, we got it from the government," he said. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Adjusting his camouflage turban, the commander pointed at the weapons and vehicles inside his camp in Sudan's war-torn region of Darfur.
Telegraph TV: Preview of 'Unreported World: Meet the Janjaweed'
"All the hardware that we have - where did we get it from?" said Mohammed Hamdan. "Do you think we just magicked it out of the air? It belongs to the government."
With those words, he destroyed a myth carefully crafted by Sudan's regime.
Hamdan commands hundreds of gunmen from the notorious Janjaweed militia, which human rights groups blame for countless atrocities in Darfur's civil war.
Instead, Mr Bashir has denounced them as "bandits and thieves" and denied giving them any arms or supplies.
Yet Hamdan spoke near a Toyota Land Cruiser, mounted with a heavy machinegun, and his fighters were armed with mortars, anti-aircraft guns and Kalashnikov rifles. "The weapons, the cars, all that you see, we got it from the government," he said. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Saturday, March 08, 2008
U.S. and Canada team up for Darfur initiative
Steven Edwards , Canwest News Service
UNITED NATIONS - Canada partnered with the United States on Thursday in a bid to speed up deployment of a 26,000-strong peacekeeping force to Sudan's Darfur region.
The United Nations Security Council approved the joint UN-African Union force last year, but equipment shortages and some administrative foot-dragging by the Sudanese government has meant only 9,200 soldiers are currently on the ground - and 7,000 of them had been there in an earlier AU force.
The U.S.-Canadian initiative aims at bringing together what one official called a "captive audience" of countries willing to fill equipment needs.
Canada has already delivered 105 armoured personnel carriers as part of a much wider aid package, but the mission still lacks vehicles and helicopters both for ground and air mobility and for firepower.
Belgium, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Norway and Italy were among countries attending the first of weekly meetings Thursday hosted by U.S. and Canadian diplomats at UN headquarters. Russia said Wednesday it is in talks aimed at delivering helicopters.
"Canada and other partners are concerned about the delays and is encouraging discussion. . . to create security in the region and to support renewed peace talks," said Eugenie Cormier-Lassonde, a spokeswoman with the Foreign Affairs Department. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
UNITED NATIONS - Canada partnered with the United States on Thursday in a bid to speed up deployment of a 26,000-strong peacekeeping force to Sudan's Darfur region.
The United Nations Security Council approved the joint UN-African Union force last year, but equipment shortages and some administrative foot-dragging by the Sudanese government has meant only 9,200 soldiers are currently on the ground - and 7,000 of them had been there in an earlier AU force.
The U.S.-Canadian initiative aims at bringing together what one official called a "captive audience" of countries willing to fill equipment needs.
Canada has already delivered 105 armoured personnel carriers as part of a much wider aid package, but the mission still lacks vehicles and helicopters both for ground and air mobility and for firepower.
Belgium, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Norway and Italy were among countries attending the first of weekly meetings Thursday hosted by U.S. and Canadian diplomats at UN headquarters. Russia said Wednesday it is in talks aimed at delivering helicopters.
"Canada and other partners are concerned about the delays and is encouraging discussion. . . to create security in the region and to support renewed peace talks," said Eugenie Cormier-Lassonde, a spokeswoman with the Foreign Affairs Department. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Sudan 'still bombing in Darfur'
A BBC correspondent in Chad has seen helicopters drop bombs over the Sudanese border in Darfur.
Stephanie Hancock says she saw a helicopter flying across the sky, then heard explosions and saw clouds of smoke coming from the ground.
Nations sending peacekeepers to Darfur are due to discuss how to speed up the force's deployment later at the UN.
Earlier, Russia offered to provide some of the helicopters which the force needs to move around the vast area.
So far only 9,000 of the planned 26,000 troops are on the ground.
Scared
Our correspondent in Baga Katala on the eastern Chadian border with Sudan was with a group of refugees who had fled previous bombing in Darfur.
They said Sudan's military wanted to stop them returning home.
Thousands of people have fled a recent government offensive in West Darfur.
Our correspondent said the helicopter was a dark colour - the refugees said the Sudanese military helicopters are black. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Stephanie Hancock says she saw a helicopter flying across the sky, then heard explosions and saw clouds of smoke coming from the ground.
Nations sending peacekeepers to Darfur are due to discuss how to speed up the force's deployment later at the UN.
Earlier, Russia offered to provide some of the helicopters which the force needs to move around the vast area.
So far only 9,000 of the planned 26,000 troops are on the ground.
Scared
Our correspondent in Baga Katala on the eastern Chadian border with Sudan was with a group of refugees who had fled previous bombing in Darfur.
They said Sudan's military wanted to stop them returning home.
Thousands of people have fled a recent government offensive in West Darfur.
Our correspondent said the helicopter was a dark colour - the refugees said the Sudanese military helicopters are black. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Beijing's Propaganda Campaign Can't Obscure Complicity in Darfur Genocide
Recent massive civilian displacement and destruction in West Darfur, orchestrated by the National Islamic Front regime in Khartoum, has been amply chronicled by UN and nongovernmental humanitarian organizations, as well as by journalists on the ground (see especially an excellent overview by Lydia Polgreen of the New York Times, “Scorched-Earth Strategy Returns to Darfur” [dateline: Suleia, West Darfur], March 2, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/02/world/africa/02darfur.html?em&ex=1204693200&en=d7ed1f3a93bc9c6f&ei=5087%0A. See also my two recent analyses of this brutal campaign at
http://www.sudanreeves.org/Article205.html and http://www.sudanreeves.org/Article204.html). Hundreds have been killed or died as a result of the violence and subsequent flight. Some 60,000 people have been newly displaced, more than 13,000 of these into a highly insecure region of Eastern Chad. Some 20,000 civilians are effectively trapped in the mountainous Jebel Moun region to the east of the initial assaults, and are prey to Khartoum’s ongoing bombing attacks, as well as ground attacks by regular army forces and Janjaweed militias. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
http://www.sudanreeves.org/Article205.html and http://www.sudanreeves.org/Article204.html). Hundreds have been killed or died as a result of the violence and subsequent flight. Some 60,000 people have been newly displaced, more than 13,000 of these into a highly insecure region of Eastern Chad. Some 20,000 civilians are effectively trapped in the mountainous Jebel Moun region to the east of the initial assaults, and are prey to Khartoum’s ongoing bombing attacks, as well as ground attacks by regular army forces and Janjaweed militias. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Arab militias, backed by the government, return in Darfur
SULEIA, Sudan: The janjaweed are back.
They came to this dusty town in the Darfur region of Sudan on horses and camels on market day. Almost everybody was in the bustling square. At the first clatter of automatic gunfire, everyone ran.
The militiamen laid waste to the town - burning huts, pillaging shops, carrying off any loot they could find and shooting anyone who stood in their way, residents said. Asha Abdullah Abakar, wizened and twice widowed, described how she hid in a hut, praying it would not be set on fire.
"I have never been so afraid," she said.
The attacks by the janjaweed, the fearsome Arab militias that came three weeks ago, accompanied by government bombers and followed by the Sudanese Army, were a return to the tactics that terrorized Darfur in the early, bloodiest stages of the conflict.
Such brutal, three-pronged attacks of this scale - involving close coordination of air power, army troops and Arab militias in areas where rebel troops have been - have rarely been seen in the past few years, when the violence became more episodic and fractured. But they resemble the kinds of campaigns that first captured the world's attention and prompted the Bush administration to call the violence in Darfur genocide.
Aid workers, diplomats and analysts say the return of such attacks is an ominous sign that the fighting in Darfur, which has grown more complex and confusing as it has stretched on for five years, is entering a new and deadly phase - one in which the government is planning a scorched-earth campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, February 28, 2008
UN - Shameful Silence On Civilian Killings in Darfur
The UN Security Council should strongly denounce the Sudanese government's recent bombardment of civilian villages in West Darfur and impose targeted sanctions on those responsible, Human Rights Watch said in a letter today.
Human Rights Watch warned that the Council's inaction has given Sudan a green light to continue attacking civilian targets, flouting international law and Security Council resolutions.
"The Sudanese government's recent attacks take us back to the very darkest days of the conflict," said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "The Security Council shouldn't stand by as though this is 'business as usual.'" Read more >>>>>>>>>>
Human Rights Watch warned that the Council's inaction has given Sudan a green light to continue attacking civilian targets, flouting international law and Security Council resolutions.
"The Sudanese government's recent attacks take us back to the very darkest days of the conflict," said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "The Security Council shouldn't stand by as though this is 'business as usual.'" Read more >>>>>>>>>>
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Indicted Sudan minister says west 'has no place in Darfur'
A Sudanese minister wanted for crimes against humanity by the international criminal court (ICC) has criticised western intervention in Darfur.
Ahmad Harun, Khartoum's humanitarian affairs minister, said the international criminal court (ICC) "has no place in this crisis at all".
Mr Harun, formerly head of the Darfur security desk, has been issued with an arrest warrant in The Hague over 40 counts of crime against humanity and war crimes including mass murder; widespread rapes; the burning of a mosque; and the expulsion of 60,000 people.
Since 2003 more than 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million forced from their homes in Sudan's western region of Darfur through the actions of the government-backed Janjaweed militia and rebel groups.
A joint United Nations/African Union peacekeeping force has been deploying since the new year, although it remains critically under strength.
In an interview with al-Hayat newspaper, translated from Arabic by the Save Darfur Coalition, Mr Harun denies crimes against humanity have taken place in Darfur.
He said the conflict was a result of Khartoum "assum[ing] its natural position of defending and protecting its citizens", although he admits "mistakes" were made. Read More >>>>>>>>>>
Ahmad Harun, Khartoum's humanitarian affairs minister, said the international criminal court (ICC) "has no place in this crisis at all".
Mr Harun, formerly head of the Darfur security desk, has been issued with an arrest warrant in The Hague over 40 counts of crime against humanity and war crimes including mass murder; widespread rapes; the burning of a mosque; and the expulsion of 60,000 people.
Since 2003 more than 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million forced from their homes in Sudan's western region of Darfur through the actions of the government-backed Janjaweed militia and rebel groups.
A joint United Nations/African Union peacekeeping force has been deploying since the new year, although it remains critically under strength.
In an interview with al-Hayat newspaper, translated from Arabic by the Save Darfur Coalition, Mr Harun denies crimes against humanity have taken place in Darfur.
He said the conflict was a result of Khartoum "assum[ing] its natural position of defending and protecting its citizens", although he admits "mistakes" were made. Read More >>>>>>>>>>
Boiling Over
A terrible consequence of the Darfur Peace Agreement, signed in May 2006 and resulting chiefly in dividing the anti-Khartoum rebel movement, is that it has allowed too many influential people to speak euphemistically about the crisis that's taking place in western Sudan and eastern Chad. Human destruction and displacement are no longer "genocidal," but rather a function of rebel fractiousness, opportunistic banditry, and a generalized "insecurity." Similarly, the role of the Khartoum regime is no longer that of orchestrating indefensible acts of violence, but of obstructing humanitarian operations and defying various international demands. All of it is terrible, of course, but not genocide.
Well, recent events in West Darfur, along the border with Chad, should compel us to start calling things by their correct names again. What we're seeing in Darfur now is a level of ethnically targeted violence that hasn't been approached since the terrifying days of 2004. Beginning on February 8, Janjaweed militias, coordinating with Khartoum's regular troops and military aircraft, began to attack areas north of el-Geneina, the capital of West Darfur. They targeted the towns of Sirba, Abu Surug, and Silea---all of which had come under control of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) this past December and January. Determined to drive the rebel group from its close proximity to el-Geneina, and bent on destroying its perceived base of civilian support, Khartoum struck quickly and savagely. (But not quickly enough to take out the rebels, who fled in advance of the attacks.) Soon, the destruction of ethnically African Masseleit and Erenga civilians and towns began in earnest. Militarily imprecise barrel bombs leveled much of these three towns, as well as surrounding villages and displaced persons camps. More than 60,000 civilians fled, perhaps 12,000 into eastern Chad, where the intensity of Khartoum's bombing attacks forced the U.N. High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to withdraw its personnel. In Silea, a town of 25,000, only 200 remained when aid officials arrived on February 14. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Well, recent events in West Darfur, along the border with Chad, should compel us to start calling things by their correct names again. What we're seeing in Darfur now is a level of ethnically targeted violence that hasn't been approached since the terrifying days of 2004. Beginning on February 8, Janjaweed militias, coordinating with Khartoum's regular troops and military aircraft, began to attack areas north of el-Geneina, the capital of West Darfur. They targeted the towns of Sirba, Abu Surug, and Silea---all of which had come under control of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) this past December and January. Determined to drive the rebel group from its close proximity to el-Geneina, and bent on destroying its perceived base of civilian support, Khartoum struck quickly and savagely. (But not quickly enough to take out the rebels, who fled in advance of the attacks.) Soon, the destruction of ethnically African Masseleit and Erenga civilians and towns began in earnest. Militarily imprecise barrel bombs leveled much of these three towns, as well as surrounding villages and displaced persons camps. More than 60,000 civilians fled, perhaps 12,000 into eastern Chad, where the intensity of Khartoum's bombing attacks forced the U.N. High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to withdraw its personnel. In Silea, a town of 25,000, only 200 remained when aid officials arrived on February 14. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Sunday, February 24, 2008
'Justice' needed for Darfur
The Hague - Nine months after the first arrest warrants were issued for those suspected of being behind atrocities in Sudan's Darfur region, the chief international prosecutor believes he has the masterminds in his sights.
International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has vowed to target the most senior people behind the violence and says that peace will only be possible in troubled Darfur if arrests are made and those responsible are brought to justice.
He issued a warrant last May for the arrest of Sudan's secretary of state for humanitarian affairs Ahmed Harun, but despite a UN resolution requiring Khartoum to comply with the court Harun is still at large.
"If Harun is not arrested and removed there will be no justice, no peace in Darfur," Moreno-Ocampo said in a telephone interview with AFP from his native Argentina on Friday.
He said arresting Harun "is the condition for any solution in Darfur." Read more>>>>>
International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has vowed to target the most senior people behind the violence and says that peace will only be possible in troubled Darfur if arrests are made and those responsible are brought to justice.
He issued a warrant last May for the arrest of Sudan's secretary of state for humanitarian affairs Ahmed Harun, but despite a UN resolution requiring Khartoum to comply with the court Harun is still at large.
"If Harun is not arrested and removed there will be no justice, no peace in Darfur," Moreno-Ocampo said in a telephone interview with AFP from his native Argentina on Friday.
He said arresting Harun "is the condition for any solution in Darfur." Read more>>>>>
Darfuris caught in crossfire as Sudan bombs rebels
(Reuters)
- Sudan has reportedly bombed a rebel-held area in Darfur, despite assurances from Khartoum that civilians sheltering in the area near the Chad border would be allowed safe passage, the United Nations said on Sunday.
"UNAMID has received reports this morning of aerial bombings in the Jabel Moun area in western Darfur," a U.N. statement said. "We are gravely concerned for the safety of thousands of civilians in this area."
Sudan launched an offensive on February 8 to retake parts of West Darfur state from rebels. Residents said at least 114 people were killed, but the army said many of those were rebels in civilian clothing.
Thousands of people fled the fighting. Some crossed the border into neighboring Chad but many sought refuge in the nearby Jabel Moun area, which has been the scene of sporadic battles between army and rebels and has been a no-go area for the U.N.-AU peacekeeping mission known as UNAMID.
U.N. officials estimate some 20,000 people were in Jabel Moun. Read more >>>>>>>>
- Sudan has reportedly bombed a rebel-held area in Darfur, despite assurances from Khartoum that civilians sheltering in the area near the Chad border would be allowed safe passage, the United Nations said on Sunday.
"UNAMID has received reports this morning of aerial bombings in the Jabel Moun area in western Darfur," a U.N. statement said. "We are gravely concerned for the safety of thousands of civilians in this area."
Sudan launched an offensive on February 8 to retake parts of West Darfur state from rebels. Residents said at least 114 people were killed, but the army said many of those were rebels in civilian clothing.
Thousands of people fled the fighting. Some crossed the border into neighboring Chad but many sought refuge in the nearby Jabel Moun area, which has been the scene of sporadic battles between army and rebels and has been a no-go area for the U.N.-AU peacekeeping mission known as UNAMID.
U.N. officials estimate some 20,000 people were in Jabel Moun. Read more >>>>>>>>
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Destruction in West Darfur Town Shocking, Reports UN Refugee Agency
United Nations refugee agency staff participating in a joint assessment of the West Darfur town of Sirba, which came under air and ground attack from the Sudanese Government and allied militia groups earlier this month, say they were shocked at the level of destruction they witnessed.
A joint UN humanitarian mission involving the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as well as the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Ameerah Haq, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, visited Sirba yesterday, as some locals drift back to the town in the wake of the deadly attack on 8 February.
The residents who stayed or returned pleaded with the assessment mission for help in securing their town and nearby villages from further attacks, UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters today in Geneva.
The residents also warned that fleeing across the nearby Chadian border was dangerous because of the continuing conflict in the area and the widespread banditry, and they voiced concern about their compatriots who have been living in eastern Chad since the attacks on Sirba and on the villages of Sileah and Abu Suruj.
UN agencies have been distributing emergency items such as food and shelter material since the attacks, while the Sudanese Government has also provided tents. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
A joint UN humanitarian mission involving the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as well as the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Ameerah Haq, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, visited Sirba yesterday, as some locals drift back to the town in the wake of the deadly attack on 8 February.
The residents who stayed or returned pleaded with the assessment mission for help in securing their town and nearby villages from further attacks, UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters today in Geneva.
The residents also warned that fleeing across the nearby Chadian border was dangerous because of the continuing conflict in the area and the widespread banditry, and they voiced concern about their compatriots who have been living in eastern Chad since the attacks on Sirba and on the villages of Sileah and Abu Suruj.
UN agencies have been distributing emergency items such as food and shelter material since the attacks, while the Sudanese Government has also provided tents. Read more >>>>>>>>>>
Friday, February 22, 2008
French minister says peacekeeping force arriving to protect Darfur refugees
PARIS: Some 500 European soldiers have already arrived in Chad as part of the EU peacekeeping mission to protect refugees from Darfur, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Friday.
The minister told reporters that planes are bringing equipment into the capital of the central African country, N'Djamena, and the eastern city of Abeche "nearly all the time" ahead of the full arrival of the troops.
The bulk of the 3,700-strong peacekeeping force, known as EUFOR, is expected to be flown in next month. A 150-member advance team arrived earlier, and Kouchner told reporters that Swedish and Polish troops are deploying.
The force — starting up on a delayed schedule because of fighting in Chad — is to help protect thousands of refugees who have fled fighting in Sudan's Darfur region.
Kouchner, speaking after a meeting with Chadian Foreign Minister Ahmad Allam-Mi, said that the European Union troops' mandate allows them to defend refugees under attack and themselves "and are very capable of doing so." Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
The minister told reporters that planes are bringing equipment into the capital of the central African country, N'Djamena, and the eastern city of Abeche "nearly all the time" ahead of the full arrival of the troops.
The bulk of the 3,700-strong peacekeeping force, known as EUFOR, is expected to be flown in next month. A 150-member advance team arrived earlier, and Kouchner told reporters that Swedish and Polish troops are deploying.
The force — starting up on a delayed schedule because of fighting in Chad — is to help protect thousands of refugees who have fled fighting in Sudan's Darfur region.
Kouchner, speaking after a meeting with Chadian Foreign Minister Ahmad Allam-Mi, said that the European Union troops' mandate allows them to defend refugees under attack and themselves "and are very capable of doing so." Read more >>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Suffering in Sudan brings calls for action
by Elaine Durbach
One question simmered at the center of the conference on Darfur at Kean University in Union last Friday, Feb. 15: Of all the tragic situations calling out for international intervention, why keep focusing on this one seemingly hopeless conflict?
That question was asked by each member of the roster of distinguished speakers at the Wilkins Theatre. It was repeated by many in the audience of almost 1,000 teachers and high school and college students from around the state and by political and community leaders from New Jersey and beyond who gathered for the conference — Darfur: The First Genocide of the 21st Century — hosted by the university’s Center for Human Rights.
Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times writer Nicolas Kristoff, the keynote speaker, gave the answer in three parts:
• Though elsewhere there have been larger numbers of victims, the cruelty inflicted on the people in the southwestern region of Sudan is extreme.
• The entire region is in danger of descending into warfare, sucking in not only northern and southern Sudan, but also Chad and the Central African Republic.
• Despite all the failed attempts, the aggression in Darfur can be halted if the right pressure is brought to bear on those supporting it.
Kristoff was returning to Africa the following day, planning to visit Darfur for the 10th time. “It’s not the magnitude of the suffering,” he said. “Many more people die each year of malaria and AIDS. I’ve seen awful things in other places, but nothing moves me more than being in Darfur — the degree of suffering there and the degree of evil. The tearing of the moral fabric there demands of us that we assert our humanity by helping others.”
With the Olympics Games drawing nearer, he said there is a rare chance to persuade host country China to reduce its crucial support for the Sudanese government — specifically by halting the supply of spare parts needed to keep its air force flying. Read more >>>>>>>>>
One question simmered at the center of the conference on Darfur at Kean University in Union last Friday, Feb. 15: Of all the tragic situations calling out for international intervention, why keep focusing on this one seemingly hopeless conflict?
That question was asked by each member of the roster of distinguished speakers at the Wilkins Theatre. It was repeated by many in the audience of almost 1,000 teachers and high school and college students from around the state and by political and community leaders from New Jersey and beyond who gathered for the conference — Darfur: The First Genocide of the 21st Century — hosted by the university’s Center for Human Rights.
Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times writer Nicolas Kristoff, the keynote speaker, gave the answer in three parts:
• Though elsewhere there have been larger numbers of victims, the cruelty inflicted on the people in the southwestern region of Sudan is extreme.
• The entire region is in danger of descending into warfare, sucking in not only northern and southern Sudan, but also Chad and the Central African Republic.
• Despite all the failed attempts, the aggression in Darfur can be halted if the right pressure is brought to bear on those supporting it.
Kristoff was returning to Africa the following day, planning to visit Darfur for the 10th time. “It’s not the magnitude of the suffering,” he said. “Many more people die each year of malaria and AIDS. I’ve seen awful things in other places, but nothing moves me more than being in Darfur — the degree of suffering there and the degree of evil. The tearing of the moral fabric there demands of us that we assert our humanity by helping others.”
With the Olympics Games drawing nearer, he said there is a rare chance to persuade host country China to reduce its crucial support for the Sudanese government — specifically by halting the supply of spare parts needed to keep its air force flying. Read more >>>>>>>>>
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
UN refugee agency quits Chad/Darfur border amid new bombings
GENEVA (AFP) —
The United Nations refugee agency said Tuesday it had withdrawn a team caring for refugees from the Chad/Darfur border after fresh aerial bombing in the conflict-riven Sudanese province.
"Aerial bombardment overnight and this morning in West Darfur, Sudan, close to the border with Chad, has forced UNHCR to withdraw its team caring for newly arrived refugees in the Birak area away from the insecure border," spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis told journalists.
The team will return "immediately the situation calms down," she added.
Seven refugees from Darfur crossed the border into Chad on Monday night, carrying with them a 55-year-old woman who had lost both her legs during an alleged bombardment of the Aro Sharow camp for internally displaced people, north of Jebel Moon in West Darfur, Pagonis said.
The woman later died at Birak's health centre, and the refugees said more people would now be fleeing to Chad.
"We have no further details of the alleged bombing raid but bombing could be heard from Birak," Pagonis said.
"This highlights the extremely vulnerable situation of the refugees and the humanitarian workers helping them," she added.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said at least 10,000 people had fled Darfur following heavy bombardment and aerial attacks by the Sudanese army and its Janjaweed militia allies on February 8. Read more >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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