U.N. Extends Peacekeeping Mission in Sudan

By Edith M. Lederer
March 24, 2006
The Washington Post
Original Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/24/AR2006032401863.html

UNITED NATIONS -- The Security Council voted Friday to keep U.N. peacekeepers in Sudan to monitor an accord ending a 21-year civil war and authorized planning for the expected extension of the U.N. force's operations to Darfur.
The resolution approved by the council also urged the U.N. force to make full use of its current mandate and capabilities against rebels from Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army and other armed groups who have been attacking civilians and committing human rights abuses in Sudan.
It's a real step forward in building peace across the entire country, Britain's U.N. Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry said in a statement after the unanimous vote.
The top U.N. envoy in Sudan, Jan Pronk, warned Tuesday that much of Sudan is in trouble and the international community is still not acting fast enough. Violence in Darfur is worsening, the Ugandan rebel group has terrorized the south, and new turmoil could engulf the east unless the council pushes for a peace deal, he said.
Fighting on both sides of the Chad-Sudan border has sparked a new influx of refugees and threatens aid to thousands who had fled violence in Sudan's western Darfur region, the U.N. food aid agency warned on Friday.
A year ago, the council voted to send 10,700 U.N. peacekeepers to monitor a January 2005 peace agreement between Sudan's mostly Muslim north and the Christian and animist south. Some 2 million people died in the conflict. Over 7,000 peacekeepers are now deployed.
Friday's resolution extends the U.N. force's mandate until Sept. 24, with the intention to renew it for further periods.
A separate 7,000-strong force from the African Union has been trying to prevent the three-year conflict in Darfur from escalating.
An estimated 180,000 people have died, mainly of hunger and disease, and some 2 million have been displaced since rebels from Darfur's ethnic African population revolted, accusing the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum of discrimination and decades of neglect.
The African Union's Peace and Security Council decided in principle on March 10 to keep the African Union force in Darfur until Sept. 30, when the handover to the U.N. is expected. Sudan opposes a U.N. takeover.
The council resolution of Friday asked Secretary-General Kofi Annan to consult with key parties and expedite the necessary preparatory planning for the transition from an AU to a U.N. operation in Darfur.
It called on Annan to present to the council by April 24 a range of options on a U.N. operation in Darfur. It also asked Annan to make recommendations by that date on how U.N. peacekeepers and U.N. agencies could more effectively address the problem of the LRA.
Jones Parry told reporters the request to the U.N. force for help in apprehending the Ugandan rebel group is very important and acknowledges the regional dimension of the conflict, which includes eastern Congo as well as Uganda and Sudan.
The Lord's Resistance Army has been fighting the Ugandan government for nearly 20 years, killing thousands of civilians, enslaving thousands of boys and girls in northern Uganda. Its leaders often cross the border into southern Sudan where they have hideouts.