US diplomat visits refugee camps in Sudan’s Darfur
April 14, 2007 (KHARTOUM ) — US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte visited refugee camps in the war-torn region of Darfur on Saturday as part of his mission to urge Sudan to allow the deployment of a hybrid UN-African Union peacekeeping force.
The second-ranked US diplomat is in the region to learn more about the situation before he meets Sudanese officials on Sunday, the state-run Radio Omdurman said.
Following initial talks with officials after his arrival on Thursday, Negroponte stressed the need for the rapid deployment of international forces in Darfur.
He is pressing Khartoum to accept a hybrid peacekeeping force of United Nations and AU forces to stem violence that has steadily escalated since the Darfur conflict erupted in 2003.
Negroponte’s visit comes after the United States held off on a decision to impose unilateral sanctions against Sudan to give UN chief Ban Ki-moon a last chance to convince Khartoum to allow UN peacekeepers into Darfur.
Ban on April 2 asked for an additional two to four weeks to pressure Sudan’s opposition to the UN’s planned deployment of a joint force of some 20,000 troops to Darfur before turning to sanctions.
On Monday, after talks involving UN, AU and Sudanese government officials in Addis Ababa over a three-stage plan for international peacekeeping in Darfur, Sudan agreed to allow the UN to start sending reinforcements to the AU troops.
Under the phased plan, roughly 2,300 UN troops will be deployed in Darfur to bolster the 7,000 under-equipped AU troops who have failed to stem the bloodshed.
Some 200,000 people have been killed in Darfur and more than two million driven from their homes, according to the United Nations. The Khartoum government disputes those figures, but some sources say the death toll is much higher.
(AFP)