The Darfur conflict in western Sudan is a highly complex one. On paper it might appear just another armed conflict between two armed groups but the story runs deeper than the opening line would suggest. The clash between the Sudanese military and the militia group Janjaweed on one side and a variety of rebel groups, notably the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement, on the other was conceived way back in 2003. But four years down the line, the controversy and misery have only piled up.
In these four years, several peace measures and round-table talks have been held but the deadlock has yet to be broken. The UN, the USA and the African Union have all failed to dig out any solution and talks of sanctions and depolyment of more troops in the troubled region have been common. The crux of the matter is that neither parties involved in the conflict are ready to accede defeat or lay down arms.
This demeanor was exemplified by the rebels leader Khalil Ibrahim on Tuesday when he refused to give up fighting until a peace deal has been finally agreed by all the parties. Ibrahim’s Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) has been the main perpetrator in the recent clashes against the army in Darfur and his disinclination to accept defeat illustrates the toughness and resoluteness of these Darfur rebels. He wants resistance to continue and succumbing to the heavy international pressure would be an indication of the end of that resistance.
A recent military alliance between JEM and Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) have made this unity faction the biggest threat in Darfur, a threat that has invited talks of sanctions from the US. Yet, the rebels are obstinate on their stance to give up arms only after a proper and acceptable peace deal has been struck.
Experts estimate that some 200,000 people have lost their lives in the volatile region of Darfur since 2003 as an aftermath of this conflict. Several of those killed are foreign aid workers who are made easy targets by the rebels and the militia. So much so that on Monday British aid agency Oxfam threaten to pull out all its aid workers from the region should the security measures in the region be not tightened. But in the face of the Sudanese government’s lack of self-assertion and its reluctance to let the UN deploy non-African troops in Darfur, security looks to remain as slack as it is at the moment.
Image Source: Blood Water Mission
Source: Reuters
