Sudan: Annan urges swift action
2006-05-19 17:45
Paris - United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan said there was not a "second to lose" if the world was to save hundreds of thousands of people in Sudan's conflict-ravaged Darfur region from starvation and disease.
Annan said: "The region is undergoing the worst humanitarian crisis gripping the planet.
"Without massive and immediate support relief, organisations will not be able to continue their work, and hunger, malnutrition and sickness will claim hundreds of thousands of victims."
Annan said an agreement signed on May 05 in Nigeria by the Sudanese government and the main rebel group in Darfur would help restore peace, but tensions remained high and other rebel groups had failed to sign the peace process.
'There is not a second to lose'
An under-funded and under-equipped African Union force monitoring a truce in Darfur had been unable to stop militia attacks on civilians caught in the crossfire of a conflict, which had claimed tens of thousands of lives in the past three years.
Annan said that the hacking to death of an AU interpreter during a visit by a UN aide official at a camp for Darfur refugees underlined the seriousness of the situation.
He said: "There is not a second to lose."
Sudan appeared on Thursday to ease its opposition to the arrival of a UN force, saying high-level talks with the UN were starting, which would open a "new window" in relations.
Annan said, in the meantime, it was important that the 7 000-strong AU peacekeeping mission in Darfur be supported and fortified.
Rebels given two weeks deadline
He said: "For the moment, there is only one force on the ground capable of ensuring this protection, that is the AU mission in Sudan.
"Our priority should be to consolidate this force to be able to enforce the peace accord and offer real security to refugees."
Two rebel groups who refused to sign the Abuja peace deal had been given two weeks to sign the deal or face sanctions from the AU.
The international community saw the accord as the only hope of ending the war, but diplomats feared it would fail to stop the violence if only one rebel faction supported it.
The Darfur crisis began in February 2003 after two rebel groups rose up against the authorities, saying the government had neglected the arid region and was arming Arab militia against civilians.