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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 22 May 2006

SUDAN: Envoys to discuss UN force deployment with gov't

NAIROBI, 22 May 2006 (IRIN) - United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has asked two senior envoys to travel to Sudan this week for talks with Sudanese government officials on planned deployment of a UN peacekeeping force in the western region of Darfur.

Annan’s special envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, and Hédi Annabi, assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, are due in Khartoum early on Tuesday to begin talks with senior government officials, according to Bahaa Elkhoussy, deputy spokesman for the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS).

"They are expected to meet high-ranking officials - if not the president, then it will probably be the vice president," said Elkhoussy. "They will discuss the implementation of the Darfur peace agreement and deployment of a UN peacekeeping force in line with the Security Council resolution." The Sudanese government is yet to give the green light for a UN technical-assessment mission to Darfur, which would lay the groundwork for the proposed deployment of UN troops.

Annan has already written to Sudanese President Umar el-Bashir seeking his support for a stronger UN force to replace the 7,000-strong African Union (AU) force in Darfur.

Despite the signing of a peace agreement between the government and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), the largest of the three rebel groups involved in the three-year conflict, the situation in Darfur is far from resolved. Two smaller rebel groups have refused to sign the accord and demanded more concessions from the Khartoum government.

The peace deal provides for the disarmament of the Darfur rebels as well as the Janjawid militia, who are allegedly backed by the Khartoum government and blamed for most of the atrocities against civilians in Darfur. Rebel groups, government troops and militia have wreaked havoc in the region since early 2003. The UN estimates that 3.6 million people - of whom 1.8 million are internally displaced and 200,000 have fled to neighbouring Chad - are affected by the conflict. More than 200,000 people have been killed as a result of violence.

The AU force - hindered by limited resources and a weak mandate - is currently responsible for patrolling Darfur, an area the size of France, hence the call for the deployment of a better-equipped UN peacekeeping force with a stronger mandate to protect civilians.

[ENDS]

This material comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2006