Tough-talking Bush challenges Sudanese over 'genocide'

The US government has issued a no-nonsense two-pronged demand that the Sudan-bound African Union (AU) security force must be expanded and a UN investigation launched immediately into the "genocide in Darfur".

Speaking yesterday, President George Bush that the US had been "appalled" by the violence in Darfur which has displaced at least 1.2 million people and forced another 200,000 to fled over the border into neighbouring Chad.

UN human rights reports have found that the militias, mainly known as Janjaweed, have carried out murders, rapes and assaults against thousands of civilians, and also destroyed or damaged villagers' homes and cropland.

Urging the world not to "ignore the suffering of more than one million people", Mr Bush said that the US would "continue to help relieve suffering".

He added: "The rebels are also guilty of cease-fire violations and failing to carry out past commitments. It is clear that only outside action can stop the killing. My government is seeking a new Security Council Resolution to authorize an expanded African Union security force to prevent further bloodshed. We will also seek to ban flights by Sudanese military aircraft in Darfur."

Committing a further $250 million – on top of the $211 million already pledged – Mr Bush stated that the Sudanese government had not complied with UN Security Council resolutions, and had not respected the ceasefire it signed.

In testimony before a US legislative committee, Secretary of State Colin Powell re-iterated President Bush's statement and declared that the killings in Darfur over the past year "constituted genocide".

Asked about Mr Powell's remarks, and whether it would lead to the invoking of the Genocide Convention, which came into force in 1951, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said: "We will now have to see the next step. The matter is being brought to a competent organ of the United Nations, the Security Council. We'll have to see what action the Council takes."

Mr Eckhard also said the peace talks taking place in Abuja, Nigeria, between representatives of Khartoum and the two Darfur rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), are deadlocked.

The US ambassador to the UN, John Danforth, has reported receiving a "very positive response" in the Security Council after circulating a draft resolution aimed at resolving the security and humanitarian crises in Darfur.

He said that all 15 members of the council recognised that action was necessary, and stressed the need for the African Union (AU) - which has a force of monitors in place in the war-torn region - to "play a vital role".

In a strongly worded warning, Mr Danforth said Khartoum that "if they stiff the AU or if they just go through sort of a long-delaying dance, there has to be some possibility of taking some action that they will notice".

"The importance of getting an outside presence into Darfur to monitor the situation is something that's impossible to overstate. That provides the most immediate assurance to the people of that region that they will have some protection," Mr Danforth said.

Mr Danforth said he was hopeful that the body could pass a resolution on the issue by next week.

(gmcg/mb)