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 12 October 2008 00:17 BST

Sudan – struggling peacekeepers

Wednesday, 23 Apr 2008 10:30
Suffering continues in Darfur
The UN has authorised a peacekeeping force for Sudan's Darfur region, but its success is far from certain.

Five years have now passed since the conflict in Darfur began, since when an estimated 300,000 people have lost their lives.

For more on the lead-up to the security council's landmark decision and background to the conflict click here.

For more on recent developments, detailing the tentative and frustratingly slow deployment of peacekeepers on the ground, read on below.

And click here to read an interview with Amnesty International on Darfur.

September-October 2007: Question-marks

Not much good news came from Sudan throughout much of September and October, with reports of a south-eastern town being razed to the ground on October 7th following quickly on the deaths of at least ten peacekeepers after a raid on their base in the same area.

But on October 27th Khartoum announced a unilateral ceasefire as peace talks began in Sirte, Libya. The news was welcome, but the agreements reached appeared to be compromised by the fact that three major rebel groups refused to attend.

More significant to prospects on the ground, according to Amnesty International researcher Liz Hodgkin, are prospects for the forthcoming UN-African Union peacekeeping force.

Expectations were remorselessly undermined by the UN's under-secretary general for peacekeeping affairs, Jean-Marie Guehenno. On October 9th he said the mission was severely under-resourced and unable to cope; and on November 14th he went further, warning that the planned deployment may not even go ahead.

"if that force was to know humiliation in the early stages of its deployment, then it would be very hard to recover," he said.

November-December 2007: Hand-wringing

Anxiety about whether the peacekeeping force will make a real difference on the ground increased over the new year period.

Command of the forces already in Darfur switched from African Union to Unamid control on January 1st but there was little change on the ground.

Existing forces were around one-third their planned strength and are missing vital units and equipment, including vital aviation capabilities.

Unamid commander General Martin Luther Agwai said he faced a "Herculean task" in stopping the conflict between rebel groups and the government on December 2nd.

And a month later UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon warned that the peacekeeping force was "critically under-strength".

Gen Agwai could not expect help from the Sudanese government, whose army was responsible for an attack on peacekeepers which saw a civilian driver critically wounded on January 8th.

Click here for full story.

January-April 2008: Mutual reproaches

The crisis prompted recriminations from both sides of the fence in the last two months.

Ahmad Harun, Khartoum's humanitarian affairs minister who is wanted for crimes against humanity by the international criminal court, said on February 27th the west should end its intervention in the region immediately.

He said the conflict was a result of Khartoum "assum[ing] its natural position of defending and protecting its citizens", although he admits "mistakes" have been made.

A day later Human Rights Watch (HRW) attacked the UN for not doing enough to condemn the Sudanese government's activities.

In its letter addressed to the security council, HRW says the UN's inaction has "given Sudan a green light to continue attacking civilian targets, flouting international law and security council resolutions".

By the fifth anniversary of the first fighting in Darfur in April the UN was forced to dramatically increase its estimate of the conflict's total death toll.

"We continue to see the goalposts receding, to the point where peace in Darfur seems further away today than ever," under-secretary general John Holmes told the security council.

Alex StevensonEnd of story


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