Sudanese lawyer reveals frauds by foreign bodies in Darfur

KHARTOUM, Jan 15, 2005 (Alwan) — The chief prosecutor of Southern Darfur State, Babikr Abd al-Latif, has revealed new fraudulent activities committed by foreign organizations operating in the region.

In a meeting in Nyala with the delegation of the Arab Journalists’ Union which is currently visiting Sudan, Babikir said yesterday there were more than five organizations involved in fraudulent activities and carried out operations which had no link with voluntary humanitarian work.

He said the day before yesterday the authorities had seized ten barrels of petrol from a vehicle belonging to the French solidarity organization [as published], after its driver said the car was empty. Following investigation it was found that the barrels contained petrol aimed at rebel areas.

Babikir pointed out that all the accused had been arrested.

He further said there were a large number of organizations which had nothing to do with humanitarian aid, mentioning that few days ago, the Israeli backed organization I.R.C. (International Rescue Committee) had paid 200m dollars to smuggle weapons from Jordan.

Material provided by the BBC Monitoring Service.