Darfur force unprecendented challenge - UN official

August 11, 2007 (RENNES, France) — The deployment of the UN-African Union peacekeeping force to the western Sudanese region of Darfur will be an unprecendented challenge, the UN official in charge of the mission said Friday.
Jean-Marie Guehenno, the UN under-secretary general for UN peacekeeping operations, told the French newspaper Ouest France that "markedly more troops" than the 26,000 planned for the mission would ultimately be needed.
He said the relative lack of mobility and firepower currently on the table would have to be addressed.
"Attack helicopters and transport are needed to have the necessary responsiveness," he said.
The peacekeeping force is already to be the biggest ever deployed in the world.
The UN Security Council on July 31 authorized its dispatch to Darfur, where more than 200,000 people have died and 2.1 million have been displaced by four years of conflict.
But Guehenno said its task, in one of the most enclosed areas of African territory, was huge.
"How do you have a solid impact on an immense, scarcely-populated territory with very dispersed villages? How do you make sure that horrors are not committed?" he asked.
"There is a logistical challenge to deploy thousands of troops with their equipment far from any coast, with badly-maintained infrastructure of limited capacity.
"This part of Sudan is prone to drought, and resupplying (troops) with provisions and water will be very complicated," he said.
The conflict in Darfur erupted when rebel groups complaining of political and economic marginalisation by the Khartoum government took up arms.
The United States has accused Khartoum of embarking on a genocidal campaign in Darfur, saying it was encouraging a militia there to brutally crack down on the population.
A peace deal was signed with the government in Abuja in May 2006 but only one rebel faction endorsed it, sparking deep divisions and a new surge in violence.
The new peacekeeping force, to replace an under-equipped AU force of 7,000 currently in place, should begin deploying in October.
(AFP)