UN Chief Warns of Worsening Insecurity in Darfur

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says the security situation in Sudan’s western region of Darfur is deteriorating, warning that the current UN-African Union joint peacekeeping force (UNAMID) was overstretched. Ban cited Monday’s killing of a Nigerian peacekeeper and increasing attacks on UN and international workers. The UN chief announced that the UNAMID would deploy 85 percent of its troops by March 2009 and special envoys would be dispatched to help renew negotiations towards a political settlement for peace in the troubled region. The UN estimates that 300,000 Darfuris have died and 2.2 million others displaced since the conflict erupted in 2003. [PE]