AID OPERATIONS, ARMS EMBARGO ARE INCREASINGLY VULNERABLE DUE TO DETERIORATING SECURITY SITUATION

Parties from all sides of the conflict have continually violated an arms embargo in Sudan. Chadian rebels have joined with government forces and the Janajweed in their attacks against rebel groups in Darfur. An expert panel of the U.N. Security Council also found that the government of Sudan continues to support Chadian rebels and the Janajaweed with weapons and vehicles. The U.N. report, released on October 11, details violations of the peace agreement and discusses the monitoring of sanctions.

Aid operations in Darfur are increasingly vulnerable due to increased violence and a worsening security situation. Food  shortages reported by World Food Programme (WFP) on October 9 point to Darfur as the most pressing food crisis. The U.N. News Agency reported that the food situation is at increasing risk if the worsening security situation "disrupts the main harvest due to start in the coming few weeks." The WFP also reports that it is unable to reach 350,000 people in North Darfur due to attacks on aid workers. On October 5, Secretary General Kofi Annan announced that humanitarian groups are at a high risk of withdrawing or reducing their aid efforts due to the deteriorating security situation. Reuters reported that four aid workers from Medecins Sans Frontieres were attacked and beaten on the road between Zalingei and Nertiti in the central Darfur region on September 11.

U.N. reports indicate that government troops attacked the North Darfur village of Malagat and an internally displaced persons (IDPs) camp in the South Darfur village of Kalma. The neighboring country of Chad is also at risk, as attacks on refugee camps and IDPs are occurring across the western border of Sudan into Chad. Approximately 213,000 Darfuris have fled to Chad since fighting began in Darfur. Such attacks threaten to spark a wider regional conflict and cause further destabilization. Aid workers are also at risk in eastern Chad.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Libyan leader Muammar Ghaddafi met on October 16 to find an AU solution to the crisis in  Darfur. They are in support of Sudan's decision to oppose U.N. peacekeepers in the region. Both leaders oppose any  foreign intervention in Darfur.

On October 11, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo addressed the AU, supporting a U.N. peacekeeping force if it keeps its African character. Obasanjo also referred to the situation in Darfur as a possible genocide, a strong move for the African leader. AU ministers were in Sudan last week to meet with officials on Darfur.

Despite strong opposition to a U.N. force, Khartoum is considering the option of an "AU plus" force, which would incorporate U.N.  logistical, technical, and financial support. Khartoum is concerned that a U.N. peacekeeping force on the ground would bring about arrests of Sudanese officials indicted by the International Criminal Court.

Both U.S. and British envoys to Darfur are in Sudan this week to hold talks with Sudanese President Bashir and pressure him to accept U.N. troops. Andrew Natsios, the U.S. envoy, and Hilary Benn, the British envoy, are hoping to convince Bashir to allow U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur in order to prevent a wider confrontation with the international community.

+ DARFUR RESOURCE CENTER
 

Updated October 17, 2006