Friday, January 11, 2008

Update: Sudanese troops fire on UN convoy

Christina Hueschen

On the ground – Sudanese soldiers fired on a convoy of UN peacekeepers in Darfur late Monday - the first attack on UNAMID troops since their mission began earlier this month.  The gunfire critically wounded a local driver and destroyed a fuel tanker; UN troops suffered no casualties.  One UN peacekeeper said the Sudanese troops apparently mistook the convoy for Darfur rebels, but the UN has condemned the attack, stating that the vehicles were clearly marked.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday that the situation in Darfur is deteriorating, and the current peacekeeping force of 9,000 is not sufficient.  He called for “the rapid deployment of hybrid operations as agreed to the level of 26,000 (peacekeepers) as soon as possible.” Ban also announced that he plans to meet with Sudanese President al-Bashir in person at an upcoming AU summit in Addis-Ababa.

In diplomacy – The president of Chad, Idriss Deby, has threatened to send his armed forces into neighboring Sudan to destroy Chadian rebel fighters he accuses Khartoum of supporting.  He also announced that he may break off diplomatic ties with Sudan.

A group calling itself Ansar al-Tawhid has come forward to claim the New Year’s Day murder of US diplomat John Granville in Sudan.  In a statement posted on a militant website, the Ansar al-Tawhid group said the January 1 killing of USAID official Granville, 33, and his driver in Khartoum was in response to attempts to impose Christianity on Sudan.

In the activist movement – The Darfur Community Peace and Stability Fund, which supports programs to develop local livelihoods in Darfur alongside efforts to work for peace and security, received its first donation of funds – 350,000 euros from Germany – this week.  The fund represents a new approach to work for peace in Darfur, one that links political progress to community-based support for development.