AU, Arab League teams end probe on Darfur atrocities

KHARTOUM, Sudan, May 12, 2004(PANA) — Delegations from African Union (AU) and Arab league have ended inquiries into developments in Sudan`s war-ravaged western region of Darfur region, according to official sources in the area.

In a statement Wednesday, Western Darfur governor Suliman Abdalla said the AU ceasefire monitoring mission “assessed the administrative and logistic capacities in Darfur” ahead of the deployment of a force to monitor the ceasefire there.

The AU delegation reportedly proceeded to N`djamena, Chad for a meeting in which a mechanism would be set up to monitor the ceasefire between Khartoum and the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM).

Concerning the Arab League mission, the Sudanese News Agency (SUNA) quoted a spokesman in Cairo as saying the league was contemplating humanitarian assistance to improve the deteriorated situation in Darfur.

The conflict in Darfur, which erupted in early 2003 has displaced more than a million people, including an estimated 110,000 refugees who have fled to Chad.

The UNHCHR demanded that the Sudanese government “unequivocally condemn all actions and crimes committed by the Janjaweed (pro- government Arab militia) and ensure that all militias are immediately disarmed and disbanded.”