Peacekeepers rebuff Chad protection force proposal

Dec 30, 2006 (LONDON) — United Nations (UN) peacekeepers have rebuffed a call from the Security Council for a force to protect refugees in Chad.

The suggested force, which would also have policed the border with Sudan, was snubbed in a rare challenge to the security council, the Financial Times reported Saturday, citing a UN peacekeeping department report which has yet to be released.

“Conditions for an effective UN peacekeeping operation do not seem to be in place at this time,” it quoted the report as saying.

“Unless all the parties were to agree to a ceasefire and engage in a dialogue…a UN force would be operating in the midst of continuing hostilities and have no clear exit strategy.”

The force was proposed in August in a resolution dealing with the regional consequences of the Darfur conflict.

The security council has also expressed concerns about attempts by rebel groups to seize power in Chad.

The report reflects peacekeepers’ concern that they are being asked to do too much around the world, the FT said.

In October, Jean-Marie Guehenno, a senior UN peacekeeping official, described an “unprecedented” surge in the number and size of missions, for example in Lebanon and Sudan.

(AFP)