Sudan will "fight any forced entry of foreign troops" / Military officer calls for greater support / "US is fomenting trouble in Sudan"
Three apparently original "Gulf News" stories from over the past week:
"Sudan will 'fight any forced entry of foreign troops'"...
In a show of bravado, the Sudanese Defence Minister said [that] the country will frustrate the nefarious designs of the United States, some Western countries and the Israelis from turning it into another Iraq.
Abdul Rahim Mohammad Hussain said [that] if the Americans or Europeans decide unilaterally to send forces into Sudan and if it comes to that [sic], "we will fight it, be it the Americans or Europeans. We will fight it".
Speaking to Gulf News yesterday [apparently Thursday] evening at his office, Hussain said [that] because of the tremendous potential of a united Sudan which is rich in natural resources, and of late has struck vast quantities of oil reserves, attracting foreign investments from China, Malaysia, [and] India, among others, "the United States, European countries and Israel want to destroy and divide Sudan [into] five countries - an independent Darfur, the South, the East, the Nubian State and Central Sudan".
The reason, he said: "They think [that] we don't deserve this potential."
'False case of crisis'
On the pretext of a "humanitarian" crisis in Darfur, he said [that] these countries are trying to create a situation similar to the one that was created before the invasion of Iraq on the false premise that the Iraqi regime was manufacturing weapons of mass destruction. "Have they found those weapons, and what have they done to Iraq now?" he asked.
Hussain said [that] Sudan is bound by the terms of the Security and Peace Council of the African Union (AU) and as per AU, it has fulfilled all its obligations signed under the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA).
"In [the] DPA, there is no provision for UN forces, but despite that we have agreed to allow a limited number of UN military helicopters and troops under the command of the AU forces.
"When we met these conditions - the so-called first stage and second stage - and when China, South Africa, Qatar and Congo [Republic] told the West that they should welcome what Sudan has done, the United States and Britain have come out with another conspiracy - a third stage."
According to him, what is now required is funding for the AU troops, and not American rhetoric about the humanitarian crisis in Darfur.
There are a number of African countries who are ready to send their troops to Sudan, but cannot do so because of the lack of funds, he said.
'Israeli interest'
When asked if the United States and its allies are trying to impose democracy in Sudan, the defence minister said [that] democracy was not the issue, the issue is the resources. The other thing is the interest of the Israelis and the Zionists.
"They have an interest in South Sudan. Their interest is water and South Sudan has the potential to increase the water flow in the river Nile. We have five schemes in the south which can increase the water level.
"One of the states is Jungli - it alone can generate around 4 billion cubic metres of water. That is why the Jewish state wants an independent south, so that the water from the south can flow through the river Nile and into Israel and so forth," Hussain said.
He added that Sudan is aware of the Jewish conspiracy since 1955 when the first rebellion took place in the south and the group of rebels was trained in Israel under the supervision of the Mossad.
"Have they found those weapons, and what have they done to Iraq now?"
Official denies violation of arms embargo
Sudan's envoy to the UN, Abdul Mahmoud Abdul Haleem, said [that] the allegations were "a lie", and that military assets were simply being moved around the country.
Abdul Mahmoud Abdul Haleem told the BBC: "According to the comprehensive peace agreement signed [after the civil war in the South] between the Sudanese government and SPLM, we have to move our military assets and aircraft, and all assets, from the South to other regions in the country.
"We are moving these military assets to their respective places. We are not using these aircraft for any military function in Darfur."
But a New York Times journalist who has seen a leaked copy of the UN report said [that] there is no doubt about the evidence.
"One thing is [clear with] pictures that appeared with the report that we actually published in the New York Times [...]," Warren Hoge told the BBC World Service's World Today programme.
"There are very clear pictures of planes painted white, and also with the UN designation on the left-hand wing of one of the planes. And also a good deal of testimony from the investigators who compiled the report.
"It's the credibility of the United Nations versus the credibility of the Sudanese authorities - and I think on that basis the United Nations report looks pretty good."
The report was compiled by a five-person panel for the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions against Sudan.
"Military officer calls for greater support"...
The African Mission in the Sudan (AMIS) requires more troops from [...] African countries, logistics, expertise, equipment and finances, to do a much better job in Darfur, said a top AMIS military officer.
"And even if it comes from the UN or any other international organisations, we don't mind it," said Colonel Jap Odalipo, Commander of Sector 2 AMIS forces in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur.
"Within our limited resources, and with the support and cooperation of the government of Sudan, we are doing a good job, but we can do a fantastic job, if all our requirements are met, even if that mean using logistics and expertise from the UN," Colonel Odalipo told Gulf News.
In Sector 2 [...], he said [that] there is calm, although there were some sporadic incidents. "I have to admit [that] there were some violations by all the parties, but we are working on security and reconciliation, and to a large extent, have succeeded in solving many of the problems that are endemic to this area, such as the robbing of cattle and holding women to ransom for returning the cattle.
"Such issues can flare up into violent clashes between the tribes," he said.
Dr Farrah Mustafa, the Deputy Governor of South Darfur, who is also the acting governor, asserted that reconciliation efforts are going on between the various factions who have not signed the Darfur Peace Agreement and [that] progress has been made on this front.
"Of late, we didn't have any major problems in South Darfur. No doubt, there is poverty here, socioeconomic and development issues which have been hijacked by some people to use as a leverage for political positions."
Compensation
Sharthai Abdullah Mohammad, Chairman of the Reconciliation Council in South Darfur and adviser to the governor of South Darfur, pointed out that talks are going on with the faction of Sudan Liberation Army headed by Abdul Wahid Mohammad Al Noor.
"Just three days ago, we had discussions with him and his demand is to compensate individually all the people who are affected by the crisis. Given the limited financial resources, it is a tall order.
["]But we are ready for a compromise. Nevertheless, we have decided to compensate them as a group, and the Sudanese government is doing its best to help and rehabilitate the people."
The SLA faction led by Abdul Wahid has not signed the Abuja [agreement], and is demanding greater concessions from the government.
According to some people, Abdul Wahid enjoys more support than Minni Minawi, the SLA leader who signed the Abuja accord.
Two more battalions to join
AMIS has eight sectors with a troop strength of only 6,000 to monitor Darfur, a semi-arid landmass the size of France, with a desert and inhospitable terrain. In a late-night meeting on Monday, Sudan agreed to allow a limited presence of UN forces and the use of UN helicopter gunships, under the command of African Union forces.
Colonel Jap Odalipo, Comander of Sector 2 AMIS forces in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, stated that two more battalions are going to join the AMIS forces, one each from Nigeria and Mauritania.
"'US is fomenting trouble in Sudan'"...
Sudan's Minister of Sate for Foreign Affairs, Ali Ahmad Kharti, blamed the US for fomenting trouble in Sudan, to cover up for its failure in Iraq.
"They want a new issue to distract the attention of the ordinary Americans and the world community, and hence have shifted their focus [to] Sudan, by highlighting the Darfur issue.
"Sudan is not isolated. The Arab League, [the] Organisation of Islamic Countries [sic] and the African Union are fully supporting the cause of Sudan, and are actively working to solve Sudan's internal and regional problems," he stated.
"All the Arab and Islamic countries, are united and if there is any disinformation to the contrary, then it is the creation of the Western media," he said.
But, he did admit that there were a "very few" African countries "who are, may be with the US" for their own selfish interest. The biggest victory for Sudan, however, he asserted was the backing of China and Russia.
"If we have two out of the five veto-power nations on our side, what do you call it? Our diplomacy is working, much to the antagonism of the US."
Although he lamented the fact that none of the Arab or African countries have a veto power in the UN, he was pleased to note that Qatar, which is one of the [10] non-permanent countries [on] the UN Security Council, is with them, since it is a brotherly Arab country. He believes that Sudan will be able to tide over the crisis with its own resources and diplomacy, and with the help of friendly countries.
Meanwhile, advisor to Sudanese President Dr Mustafa Othman Esmail said [that] the country will not implement the UN resolution.
Dead
"For us it [UN Resolution 1706] is dead, because we refuse it, and we said that we are not going to implement it," Esmail told Gulf News yesterday [apparently Monday] evening.
Esmail, a former foreign affairs minister, made it clear that Sudan [has] analysed the situation and assessed it, and [has] come to the conclusion that "it is better for us to be under US sanctions rather than to accept the resolution 1706."
He remarked that sanctions from the US on Sudan are already there, and [that] there is nothing [that] they can add to that.
When asked if the issue of sanctions figured in the talks with John Negroponte, he categorically stated: "No official in Sudan discussed with Negroponte, [']are you going to apply sanctions or not[?'], because this is an issue up to them. It is not our priority. Moreover, Sudan has no dealings with the US, they can punish a third country."
However, he said that Sudan is ready for a dialogue with the US to improve bilateral relations.
"We explained the position of the government of Sudan on Darfur, and we told them that we reached an agreement with the UN, and if the United States has got anything, and if they think that there is a need for dialogue, we are ready."
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