Daily Darfur

Friday, February 04, 2005

Daily Darfur

The Security Council will be holding a series of meetings (at least 2, maybe 3) to discuss the recent Commission report and try determine a course of action.

The AU reports that it is deployed another 300+ troops to Darfur, bringing the total to 1,400. That is less than half the number of troops that are supposed to be there and thirty times less than the numbers experts predict are needed.

David B. Rivkin Jr. and Lee A. Casey, who have a long history of opposing the International Criminal Court, have an op-ed in the Washington Times arguing, not surprisingly, against referring the crimes in Sudan to the ICC and advocates so sort of mixed tribunal or expanding the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

Of course, the UN report strongly recommends prosecution in the ICC and explicitly rejects the idea of creating a new ad hoc tribunal or attempting to roll the Sudan situation into the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

I'm guessing that Rivkin and Casey didn't bother to read the report. Either that, or they have simply decided that they are not going to let these reports of massive atrocities get in the way of their ideology. Things such as this
The victim saw women were being taken, people being killed, cattle being stolen, and food being burnt. She further described the following: "Ten Janjaweed came into my house. They took me and my six sisters who were 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 and 24 years old. They said "why are you staying here, you slaves." We did not reply. They were armed and all of them were pointing their guns at us. While they were in our house, they shot my two brothers. They took us outside and beat us with the leather straps which they use to control the camels. The beating lasted for 20 minutes.

After being beaten, we were taken to Wadi Tina. They made us walk while they rode their camels. It took us three hours to get there. During this time they beat us and threatened to kill us. When we arrived at Wadi Tina, I saw at least 95 women there. We were left in the Wadi with a large group of women and were guarded by at least 100 armed Janjaweed. All the women were naked. Soon after our arrival we were forced at gun point to take off our clothing.

Around 8h00 in the morning on the second day at the Wadi, I was raped for the first time. A very large group of Janjaweed arrived at the Wadi. They selected a woman each and raped them. Over a period of a week, I was raped 14 times by different Janjaweed. I told them to stop. They said "you are women of Tora Bora and we will not stop this." We were called slaves and frequently beaten with leather straps, punched and slapped. I feared for my life if I do not have sex with them. We were humiliated in front of other women and were forced to have sex in front of them. Other Janjaweed were watching"
Or this
Inhumane acts such as throwing people, including children, into fire were committed by the Janjaweed during several attacks. Five such incidents were reported from Urbatete, Tarabeba, Tanako, Mangarsa and Kanjew villages in West Darfur. In most of these incidents victims were burnt to death. Extreme mental torture was inflicted on many mothers who saw their children burn alive after they were snatched from their arms by the Janjaweed and thrown into the fire. Houses were set on fire with the inhabitants still inside. Most of the victims in such incidents were children. Inhumane forms of killings used by the Janjaweed include crucifixion of victims during the attack on the village of Hashab in North Darfur in January 2004. In one case reported from Deleba in West Darfur, the victim was beaten to death.

[edit]

Particularly shocking were the acts of torture and cruel and degrading treatment that accompanied other serious crimes committed by Government forces and the Janjaweed against the civilian population during the Kailek incident in South Darfur. During the attack as well as the subsequent forced confinement of the population, several persons were subjected to severe torture in order to extract information about rebels, as punishment or to terrorize the people. The Commission has heard credible accounts that those captured by the assailants were dragged along the ground by horses and camels from a noose placed around their necks. Witnesses described how a young man's eyes were gouged out. Once blinded, he was forced to run and then shot dead.

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