Sudan denounces UN Ki-Moon statement over Darfur air strikes
March 3, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese army has censured UN secretary general statement condemning Darfur air strikes. The army said that its mission is to protect civilians in the area against rebel attacks.
The official spokesperson for the armed forces, Brig-Gen Osman Mohamed al-Aghbash, said that the accusations being made by the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-Moon, demanding that the government ends air strikes in Darfur were aimed at forestalling the current peace efforts and could send negative signals that may frustrate efforts being exerted to complete the Darfur peace process.
“I particularly deplore the aerial bombings by Sudanese government forces, which have expanded to new areas since 19 January, resulting in more civilian casualties and suffering,” Ban Ki-Moon said in a report to the Security Council on Wednesday Feb 28.
AL-Aghabash further said that such accusations could also discourage efforts aimed at encouraging the armed movements to join the peace process. He added that the military was only undertaking restricted defence operations aimed at stopping aggression by the rebel movements and “outlaws”.
Following the signing the Darfur Peace Agreement, the non-signatories were labeled as outlaws and they were being bombed regularly. On the other hand, Khartoum re-armed the Janjaweed militia who, since the signing of the peace deal, multiplied attacks against Darfur civilians, aid workers and sporadically AU peacekeepers.
In reaction to Sudanese First Vice-President Friday 2 February saying there is a need for UN peacekeepers to protect Darfur civilians because of the government failure, presidential adviser, Majzoub al-Khalifa, retorted that “from a security point of view the current situation in Darfur is much better than in (the southern Sudanese capital) Juba.”
But the African Union mission currently working in Darfur warned on Saturday that it risked being paralysed after a civilian working for the AU was beaten up and robbed at his home in Darfur’s main city of Al-Fasher.
“If this kind of attack continues, we are at risk of being paralysed,” AU spokesperson Noureddine Mezni said after four armed men on Thursday burst into the employee’s house, assaulted him and stole his mobile telephone and vehicle.
The ill equipped AU mission of 7,000 troops continues to be targeted by attacks that the Sudanese government blames on rebels.
(ST)