August 13, 2007 (WASHINGTON) — A Darfur rebel leader expressed “deep disappointment” over statements made by African Union (AU) chairman in which he said that the UN-AU hybrid force will be under AU command.
AU chairman Alpha Oumar Konare told reporters following a meeting with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in Khartoum that the AU “will not allow the force [hybrid force] to be under any other command”.
Konare also rejected the term hybrid force and insisted that it is a hybrid operation. He also said that there are enough pledges from African countries for the hybrid force. However he did not elaborate.
UN resolution 1769 authorizing on Darfur stated that "there will be unity of command and control," meaning a single chain of command and that "command and control structures and backstopping will be provided by the United Nations".
Abdelwahid al-Nur leader of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) told Sudan Tribune that Konare’s statements “only mean that we are back to square one”.
“This is a UN-AU force and as such it should incorporate troops from all over the world. We need an effective peace force to protect civilians. We do not simply want the deployment of extra troops in Darfur that do nothing but receive salaries” he added.
Eric Reeves, an academic and an expert on Sudan affairs, told Sudan Tribune that “Khartoum has managed to secure Konare as an ally within the AU, which ensures that deployment of an AU/UN force will be that much more difficult”.
“Konare’s statement will make it impossible to attract non-African troops or civilian police; this is an enormously consequential development, and deeply threatens the viability of the force” he added.
Yesterday the spokesperson of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Ahmed Hussein Adam said that International community must consult rebel groups on the selection of countries taking part in the hybrid operation.
Ahmed warned that his group demands that troops should only be provided by neutral countries.
Rebel groups fear that the AU wants to create a force tailored in composition and mandate to please the Sudanese government thus reducing the effectiveness of the force.
“We asked for something very simple; the deployment of a peacekeeping force to protect our people then we will go to peace talks anytime anywhere. Khartoum is doing everything it can to prevent or slow that process” Al-Nur said.
“At the end of the day they accuse us of blocking peace efforts in Darfur. How could that be?” he added.
The Darfur conflict began in 2003 when an ethnic minority rose up against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum, which then was accused of enlisting the Janjaweed militia group to help crush the rebellion.
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