Egypt says Sudan must be given time to control crisis in Darfur
CAIRO, Egypt, July 15, 2004 (AP) — Egypt said Thursday that neighboring Sudan needs more time and help to restore peace in Darfur and should not be threatened with U.N. sanctions.
Egyptian presidential spokesman Maged Abdel Fattah said the situation in Darfur, where a 15-month conflict has killed 30,000 people and leaving 2.2 million in desperate need of food and medicine “is complex…and cannot be resolved through sanctions, an arms embargo or a ban on the rebel tribes or the Janjaweed.”
He was speaking to reporters after talks between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Sudanese counterpart Omar el-Bashir on the situation in the western Sudanese state of Darfur, described by the U.N. as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
The conflict is between African rebel groups and Arab militias called the Janjaweed, which el-Bashir’s government is accused of backing. El-Bashir denies the charge.
On July 8, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sudan hasn’t followed through on promises to help people in Darfur and warned that its failure to act could lead to tough U.N. Security Council sanctions.
A U.S. draft resolution to the Security Council urges Sudan to fulfill its commitments to end violence in Darfur and give access to aid workers. The resolution also urges warring parties to conclude a political agreement and commits all states to target sanctions against the government-backed militias held responsible for the crisis.
Last week, the African Union, in an initiative backed by the U.N., Washington and Darfur rebel movements, won a concession from el-Bashir to send 300 troops to Darfur.
“We should allow the Sudanese government the full opportunity to implement the African Union decision and to implement the agreement,” Abdel Fattah said, adding that if el-Bashir’s government “is given the time, capabilities and necessary assistance … it (will be) capable of controlling the situation.”
July 3, the U.N. and Sudan signed an agreement calling for disarming the militias, deploying 6,000 Sudanese soldiers and policemen to improve security, facilitating humanitarian aid, and allowing African Union troops and human rights monitors into Darfur.
El-Bashir told Mubarak his government is working to meet the 90-day period stipulated in the agreement to help displaced people and commit Sudan ‘s government to register nongovernment organizations permanently.
El-Bashir said some 100,000 refugees and displaced people had already returned to their homes, out of a total of 200,000. The U.S., however, says more than 1 million have fled their homes.
U.N. envoy to Sudan , Jan Pronk, was in Sudan Thursday holding talks on the agreement’s implementation.