Sudan rebels want UN troops
2006-06-21 22:43
The Hague - UN troops are the best equipped to restore and maintain peace in Darfur, a rebel representative said on Wednesday at the start of a two-day conference on rebuilding the shattered Sudanese region.
"As far as security is concerned, I think they are the most capable forces," Mohammed Eltijani Eltayeb, of the Sudan Liberation Movement, told The Associated Press.
"UN forces are already in Sudan everywhere," he added, during a break in talks on reconstruction efforts in Darfur being hosted by the Dutch government in The Hague.
"What is the reason for not having them in Darfur?"
His comments underscored marked differences that still exist between both sides, which are attempting to implement a peace plan signed May 5 in Abuja, Nigeria.
'Never'
On Tuesday, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir reasserted that he will never allow UN peacekeepers into Darfur, and said he would lead the "resistance" against any foreign force.
The UN wants to send a beefed-up peacekeeping force to replace 7 000 African Union troops that have largely been unable to halt fighting in Darfur, where nearly 200 000 people have been killed and more than 2 million displaced since rebel groups made up of ethnic Africans rose up against the Arab-led Khartoum government in early 2003.
The government is accused of responding by unleashing Arab militias known as the janjaweed who have been accused of some of the worst atrocities - but it denies any involvement.
The Sudan Liberation Movement and the government are taking part in the conference along with representatives from international groups including the World Bank, African Development Bank and United Nations.
- AP