UN sets deadline for Sudan action -- But it may never be enforced
Friday, July 30, 2004 at 06:14AM
TheSpook
The UN Security Council has warned the
Sudan government that it must halt atrocities by Arab militias in the
western Darfur region within 30 days. A US-drafted resolution demanding
that Khartoum disarm the fighters was passed with two abstentions. The
vote was only passed after the United States deleted the
provocative word "sanctions" from the resolution and substituted a
reference to a provision in the U.N. charter that describes various
forms of sanctions. No specific measures were identified to punish the
Sudanese government. The resolution also placed a weapons embargo on
armed groups in Darfur. Whether sanctions ever will be imposed is
questionable. The United States and its European allies in the Security
Council faced considerable opposition on the resolution and had to
reword the sanctions threat to attract enough votes. However, many
humanitarian organizations believe the resolution is far too mild. [more] and [more]