The Evening Post

Sep 9, 2010

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January 1 deadline for Sudan

By AFP
US threatens coercive action if Khartoum does not allow UN peacekeepers in Darfur by year end

WASHINGTON A senior US official warned yesterday that Sudan faces a January 1 deadline to accept the deployment of UN peacekeepers to Darfur or face coercive international action to halt violence in the region.
US Presidential envoy to Sudan Andrew Natsios said he told Sudanese leaders in Khartoum last week they must allow an initial group of 60 UN peacekeeping staff currently “marooned” in the Sudanese capital to deploy to Darfur by year’s end.
He also said Sudan must “accept in writing” a plan put forward last month by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to place 20,000 UN-led troops in Darfur to halt violence which has left more than 200,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced over the past four years.
“I have said publicly that I think making threats is not very useful, but we are going to take a different approach to this in January and there is a plan to do that,” Natsios said.
Natsios refused to provide details of what he described as “Plan B” if Sudan persists in rejecting the UN deployment, saying it was classified.
But US officials confirmed last week that enforcing a no-fly zone over Darfur, imposing sanctions on Sudan and backing prosecution of some Khartoum officials for crimes against humanity were among available options.
Natsios said the “Plan B” had been discussed with key partners, which include the European Union, China and the Arab League.
The international community is also seeking to obtain a “humanitarian ceasefire” in Darfur over the next 10 days to allow a resumption of aid to camps housing tens of thousands of people, he said.