KHARTOUM, April 8 (Xinhua) -- The special envoy of the U.S. president to Sudan Scott Gration said on Wednesday that he held "constructive" talks with Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor on the situations in the western Sudanese region of Darfur and southern Sudan.
The U.S. envoy told reporters at the end of the meeting that he briefed the Sudanese foreign minister on the results of his visits to Darfur and Juba, the capital of southern Sudan, as well as Abyei, a disputed area between northern and southern Sudan.
He said that he found the situation in some areas in Darfur much better than what he had expected in particular with regard to the food, while the situation in some other areas was worse especially in the areas of water and health care.
He added that a coordination between all parties concerned was necessary to improve the situation of displaced persons in Darfur and improve their poor nutrition condition.
Gration noted that the priorities for the next phase would focus on addressing the emergency situation in Darfur in the humanitarian and security fields and reach a ceasefire between the conflicting parties.
The Sudanese foreign minister, on his part, expressed his confidence that the visit of the U.S. envoy to Sudan would help the new U.S. administration to deal with Sudan in the coming period.
He disclosed that senator John Kerry, the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations in the U.S. Senate, would visit Sudan in the next week, adding that Kerry's visit would be an extension of the U.S. envoy's visit that would contribute to the development of the U.S. strategy for dealing with Sudan in the next phase.
Gration, a former U.S. Air Force major general, arrived in Sudan last Thursday on his first visit to the African country since he was appointed the special envoy by U.S. President Barack Obama.
Article citation: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-04/09/content_11152761.htm
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Let them decide: Civilians trapped with Tamil Tiger fighters must be offered an exit before a bloodbath ensues
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Date: 08 Apr 2009
by John Holmes, first published by The Guardian
As London witnesses Tamil protests, a bloodbath on the beaches of northern Sri Lanka seems an increasingly real possibility. The Sri Lankan military has pushed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam into an area so small that any shooting or shelling inevitably causes casualties among the 150,000 to 190,000 civilians trapped in the same zone. There have been many hundreds of civilian deaths caused by firing from both sides, though exact numbers and who fired what and when are impossible to verify. It is clear that the LTTE is refusing to let people flee, though many are managing to escape somehow, and I fear the combatants may be gearing up for a final confrontation. This is a very grave situation.
As a full-scale, long-term ceasefire is unlikely to be agreed now, the only way to get the civilians out of harm's way is a temporary humanitarian lull, during which aid workers and relief supplies must be allowed into the conflict zone, and those who want to leave must be given the chance to do so.
Both sides have a duty to bring this about. The LTTE's leadership claims the civilians in the conflict zone do not want to leave because they accompanied the LTTE voluntarily in the first place and are afraid of government reprisals. Yet there are continuing reports that the group's fighters are shooting at fleeing civilians, limiting fishing and sabotaging boats that might be used to escape, and forcing people to fight against their will. Civilians trapped by the fighting must be allowed a free choice of whether to leave or stay, as we have made clear to the LTTE. If the LTTE truly has the best interests of the Tamil people at heart, they should contribute to ending this unnecessary civilian suffering.
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To read more, visit: http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/EDIS-7QWKT5?OpenDocument&RSS20=18-P
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Over 180 Civilians Killed, Most by Rwandan Rebels
A Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) soldier walks toward a distribution center near Lushubere Camp in Masisi, North Kivu.
The United Nations Security Council will discuss on April 9 the latest report by the UN secretary-general on the peacekeeping force in Congo. Human Rights Watch called on the UN Security Council to press the Congolese government to remove human rights abusers from its armed forces and end rights violations, including attacks against women and girls.
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To read more, visit: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/04/08/dr-congo-brutal-rapes-rebels-and-army
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