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Chaos in Darfur
October 20, 2005: The UN said that it will withdraw "non-essential staff" from Sudan's western Darfur region. Four to five months ago there were indications that the security situation in Darfur was improving and might continue to improve. African Union (AU) peacekeepers were trickling into the region. Aid convoys were arriving with greater frequency. Reports that the rebel movement was fragmenting began turning up in August-- which meant more "freelance" violence. In September and October, raids by Islamist militias increased. Now it appears that some Arab militias have turned on their chief backer, the Sudanese government. Government control of the militias it backed has always been always iffy. That was the case in southern Sudan when the government paid Moslem militias to fight the SPLA. Often times the militias (many drawn from northern and western tribes) had their own agenda. That agenda included crime. This seems to be the path Darfur is taking. Posted by: Steve 2005-10-20 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=132693 |