U.N. report urges greater international presence in Sudan
UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called Wednesday for a "substantially increased international presence" as quickly as possible in the Darfur region of Sudan, saying the Sudanese government had not met its obligation to stop attacks against civilians.
The situation in Darfur in the African nation of Sudan is considered the worst humanitarian crisis at the moment in the world.
In his report to the U.N. Security Council, Annan said African Union monitors could help improve the situation "in critical respects: decrease the level of violence and enhance the protection of the civilian population," particularly the displaced.
The U.N. special envoy to Sudan, Jan Pronk, will brief the council Thursday, and it will use the report in deciding the next steps. The report does not recommend sanctions against the Sudanese government, and diplomats have said it is unlikely that the council will impose such penalties at this time.
"Attacks against civilians are continuing and the vast majority of armed militias have not been disarmed," the Annan report said. "Similarly, no concrete steps have been taken to bring to justice or even identify any of the militia leaders or the perpetrators of these attacks, allowing the violations of human rights and the basic laws of war to continue in a climate of impunity."
The conflict in Darfur, in eastern Sudan, began last year when black Sudanese rebels attacked government property, accusing the government of neglecting Darfur in favor of the Arab population in Sudan.
The government responded by putting forward the Janjaweed to put down the rebellion. The warring factions recently agreed to a cease-fire, but violence between them has continued.
Several international human rights groups estimate that 15,000 to 30,000 civilians have died in Darfur since fighting broke out in February 2003.
More than 1 million people have been displaced by the hostilities, fleeing to other places in Sudan or across the border to Chad.
Annan's report did say there has been some progress, including improved security in areas where refugees are concentrated, the deployment of more police, the beginning of disarmament and the lifting of access restrictions for humanitarian aid.
The report said the Sudanese government has yet to fulfill its "most critical commitment" of disarming the Janjaweed and other outlaw groups.
The report also criticized recent action by Sudanese troops, saying they use a "level of violence that seems at odds with the principle of restraint [the government] promised to observe."
Security Council diplomats had been expecting such a mixed assessment and expected that no dramatic improvements would be reported.
While the report said there was an "urgent need to take immediate action," it also said there is an "acknowledgment that not all the commitments made by the government could be fully implemented within 30 days. Making an area the size of Darfur, with the amount of armed men and violent recent history, safe and secure for all civilians takes more than 30 days."
On July 30, the council passed a resolution giving the Sudanese government 30 days to show "progress" to disarm the Janjaweed militias and stop the attacks on civilians and said it would consider unspecified sanctions if there had been no progress.
