Students protest as Annan arrives in Sudan

KHARTOUM, June 30, 2004 (dpa) — Students demonstrated in Sudan’s University of Khartoum concerning the crisis in the Darfur region shortly after United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan arrived Wednesday.

U.N. staff are engaged in intensive meetings following Annan’s arrival, first with the staff of international humanitarian organizations working in the country.

Annan is also expected to hold a meeting Wednesday evening with Sudanese Foreign Ministry officials on the worsening situation in Darfur, which aid workers say hundreds of thousands of people may face starvation due to ongoing attacks by Arab paramilitaries.

Also in the country is United States Secretary of the State Colin Powell, who planned to get a personal account of the crisis in the country.

Powell and Annan will hold a joint press conference tonight at the Khartoum International Airport to publicly announce suitable measures they hope could resolve the crisis.

Tight-up security measures continue Wednesday in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum with a heavy presence of armed uniformed and plain-clothes personnel on the streets.

A student witness at the University of Khartoum said students had attempted to meet with with Annan, who was visiting U.N. staff near the university campus, but students were prevented by police.

There have no reports of injuries during the student demonstrations but unrest including explosions said to be taking place on the university campus.

It was reported that a high number of students from the Darfur region took part in the demonstrations.