Regions

UN: Sudanese government admits ties to some janjaweed fighters

20 August 2004
In Regions

KHARTOUM, Sudan, August 20, 2004 (AP) — The United Nations on Friday said the Sudanese government, which has long denied ties to Arab militias blamed for killing thousands in Darfur’s bloody 18-month conflict, has acknowledged they have “control” over some Janjaweed fighters in the region.

Radhia Achouri, spokesperson for the U.N. Mission in Sudan , said Sudanese authorities recently have promised to provide the world body in the next week a list of Janjaweed fighters suspected of involvement in the Darfur conflict, which has killed an estimated 30,000 people.

“The government used to refer to the Janjaweed as a bunch of thugs and absolutely denied any ties with them,” Achouri told The Associated Press in Egypt during a telephone interview from a Darfur relief camp, where some of the more than 1 million people displaced by the conflict are now living.

“But by promising to provide this list, they are admitting they have influence on some members of the Janjaweed militias, which marks a huge progress on the position of the Sudanese government. Simply put, they have control over them.”

Achouri did not know how many names the list will include, but by agreeing to provide the document, she said Sudanese authorities have proven they “have ties and connections with the Janjaweed and can impose on them some actions and behavior.”

In New York, U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said the Sudanese foreign minister, Mustafa Osman Ismail, met with U.N. envoy to Sudan , Jan Pronk, in Khartoum on Thursday and indicated “that the names and numbers of the militia would be provided shortly.”

Sudanese officials were not available for comment, but the government has long denied supporting the Janjaweed.

Achouri said the list, which is one of several Sudanese government commitments agreed to under an action plan signed with the United Nations to end the Darfur crisis, will be published in newspapers and used to help in government attempts to round up suspected Janjaweed members.