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Bush sends food aid to Darfur
 US President George W Bush has urged Sudan to allow UN peacekeepers into Darfur, and says he is shipping emergency food to the country. Mr Bush has called Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who he has previously accused of aiding genocide in Darfur, to press him to allow UN and NATO troops to take over from an African peacekeeping mission in double the numbers.
| Which has precisely what to do with the accusation of genocide? |
After mixed messages from his government on the mission, President Bashir told President Bush he would consider the request seriously. But he has not committed to permitting up to 14,000 troops to enter the area.
| A military force of even minimal competence is the last thing he wants. |
Mr Bush's move comes after the Government and rebels reached a US-brokered peace accord.
| The government and some of the rebels, not all of them. |
It also follows huge rallies this month in the US, urging pressure on Sudan to end the violence.
| I'm sure that as soon as Bush saw George Clooney was on the case he hopped right on it... |
The Bush administration originally requested $A390 million in humanitarian assistance for Darfur in its budget. Then it added $A292 million in a supplemental bill, which is snarled in Congress as senators try to add spending to it that Mr Bush considers unnecessary. Mr Bush has urged lawmakers to give the bill swift passage to provide relief for Darfur, where three years of fighting have killed tens of thousands of people and forced 2 million from their homes.
Posted by: Fred 2006-05-09 |
