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President Bush Authorizes US Air Support For Darfur Mission
President George W. Bush on Monday authorized the immediate use of US aircrafts to transport supplies to the international peacekeeping force in Darfur, the White House said.Bush signed a memo saying that aiding the joint United Nations and African Union peacekeeping troops in Darfur through "the airlift of equipment for peacekeeping in Darfur" was "important to the security interests of the United States." The US president's authorization meant that air support should be provided without delay, given the critical situation in war-torn western Sudan, the White House said. The struggling AU-UN force, known as UNAMID, was authorized in July 2007 by the Security Council to grow into the largest UN peacekeeping force in the world at an estimated strength of 26,000. However, the United Nations has said only about half of the mission was deployed at the end of 2008, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in a report last month that the Darfur force continues to face "enormous challenges." "Violence and displacement continue, humanitarian operations are at risk (and) clashes between the parties occur with regrettable regularity," Ban said. Posted by: lftbhndagn 2009-01-05 |
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