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| Sudan welcomes Darfur extension | Sudan welcomes Darfur extension |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Sudanese officials have welcomed a decision by the African Union to extend the mandate of its peacekeeping force in Darfur until the end of the year. | Sudanese officials have welcomed a decision by the African Union to extend the mandate of its peacekeeping force in Darfur until the end of the year. |
| Foreign Minister Al-Sammani Al-Wasila Al-Sammani told AFP news agency the force was preferable to a UN force proposed by the Security Council. | Foreign Minister Al-Sammani Al-Wasila Al-Sammani told AFP news agency the force was preferable to a UN force proposed by the Security Council. |
| But he said a six-month extension to the mandate would have been better. | But he said a six-month extension to the mandate would have been better. |
| The UN wants to send peacekeepers to end what some states call genocide by Sudan's army and associated militias. | The UN wants to send peacekeepers to end what some states call genocide by Sudan's army and associated militias. |
| However the Sudanese government has repeatedly rejected plans to transform the African force into the 22,000-strong UN mission agreed to by the Security Council last month. | However the Sudanese government has repeatedly rejected plans to transform the African force into the 22,000-strong UN mission agreed to by the Security Council last month. |
| The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Darfur says African Union (AU) troops are providing some security but it is a mere sticking plaster on a gaping wound. | The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Darfur says African Union (AU) troops are providing some security but it is a mere sticking plaster on a gaping wound. |
| More than 200,000 people have died in the three-year rebellion. Over two million people have been displaced. | More than 200,000 people have died in the three-year rebellion. Over two million people have been displaced. |
| Transitional stage | Transitional stage |
| Mr Al-Sammani said the 7,000-strong AU force - which had been due to leave by 30 September - was better than the alternatives. | Mr Al-Sammani said the 7,000-strong AU force - which had been due to leave by 30 September - was better than the alternatives. |
| AU FORCE 7,200 troopsMandate renewed until 31 DecemberMainly Rwandan and Nigerian troopsMain role to monitor and verify peace agreementLow in morale, poorly equipped and vulnerable to attack Dying in Darfur UN assembly at a glance Send us your views | AU FORCE 7,200 troopsMandate renewed until 31 DecemberMainly Rwandan and Nigerian troopsMain role to monitor and verify peace agreementLow in morale, poorly equipped and vulnerable to attack Dying in Darfur UN assembly at a glance Send us your views |
| "It is easier for the international community to assist financially and technically an AU force which is already on the ground rather than starting from scratch with other forces like those of the UN," he said. | |
| Meanwhile Sudanese presidential adviser Majdhub al-Khalifah said the AU decision would give an impetus to Khartoum and signatory rebel movements to implement the Abuja peace agreement on the ground. | Meanwhile Sudanese presidential adviser Majdhub al-Khalifah said the AU decision would give an impetus to Khartoum and signatory rebel movements to implement the Abuja peace agreement on the ground. |
| The UN Secretary General's special envoy to Sudan, Jan Pronk, gave the decision a cautious welcome, but warned that the AU force needed strengthening and a more robust mandate. | |
| "They are not as effective as they used to be a year ago but they deter by their presence and if they would leave, which the government wants, then the road would be open for all forces of evil," he said. | |
| A UK Foreign Office spokesman said that while the extension of the AU force was not the solution to the problem it could serve as a transitional stage before the UN came in. | |
| UN debate | |
| The decision was announced after a meeting of African heads of state at the United Nations in New York, along with pledges to strengthen the force and add logistical support from the UN and financial help from the Arab League. | |
| See which parts of Darfur are too dangerous for aid workersEnlarge Map | See which parts of Darfur are too dangerous for aid workersEnlarge Map |
| But the BBC's Mike Wooldridge at the UN says the decision only gives hope that the imminent danger of greater bloodshed and an even bigger humanitarian crisis will be averted. | But the BBC's Mike Wooldridge at the UN says the decision only gives hope that the imminent danger of greater bloodshed and an even bigger humanitarian crisis will be averted. |
| Representatives of all the Security Council members and 10 other nations will now meet on the margins of the UN General Assembly on Friday to discuss bolstering support for the peacekeepers. | Representatives of all the Security Council members and 10 other nations will now meet on the margins of the UN General Assembly on Friday to discuss bolstering support for the peacekeepers. |
| The short-term plan is to strengthen this force with extra funding and material and logistical support, our correspondent says. | |
| Much of Darfur is inaccessible to aid agencies and the security situation has deteriorated in recent weeks. | Much of Darfur is inaccessible to aid agencies and the security situation has deteriorated in recent weeks. |