Kofi Annan Urges Sudanese Government to Comply with Darfur Resolution - 2004-08-04

Kofi Annan, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, has urged the Sudanese government to comply with the UN Security Council resolution regarding the Darfur region. Mr. Annan states that Sudan has received a clear and strong message from the international community. He added that recent statements from the Sudanese government indicate that Sudan intends to comply with the resolution; otherwise, it will be responsible for the consequences. The UN Security Council last Friday approved a resolution giving the Sudanese government 30 days to disarm the Arab militias accused of committing atrocities against civilians in Darfur. The resolution states that the Sudanese government will face economic and diplomatic sanctions if it does not comply. The United Nations estimates that Arab militias have killed approximately 50,000 people in Darfur and displaced over one million. In another event, tens of thousands of people in Sudan marched and protested in the streets of Khartoum, the capital, on Wednesday against the UN Security Council resolution and foreign intervention. Meanwhile, the African Union announced on Wednesday that it intends to send a robust 2,000-strong peacekeeping force to Darfur. Sudanese officials stated on Tuesday that they plan to send an additional 1,000 police officers to Darfur in the coming days to join the 5,000-strong force currently stationed there.