US Rep. calls for Sudan sanctions

N’DJAMENA, Chad, Jan 25, 2005 (UPI) — A U.S. congressman has called for United Nations sanctions against Sudan after touring the embattled Darfur region, the BBC reported Tuesday.

Speaking from neighboring Chad after the tour, Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., told the BBC the Janjaweed militias had committed ethnic cleansing against Darfur’s non-Arab groups with government support.

The Sudanese government has repeatedly denied backing the notorious militias and blames rebels for the conflict, which has killed some 70,000 people and left another 1.5 million displaced.

The United States has already called for sanctions to be imposed against Sudan, but other members of the U.N. Security Council have watered down previous resolutions.

But as pressure mounted for action to be taken, Vice-President Osman Ali Taha traveled to Belgium to witness the unblocking of assets worth $600 million held in the European Union, the Sudanese news agency Suna reported Tuesday.