apparently encouraged by the world's acquiescence, Sudan is sending its proxy forces to invade neighboring Chad and kill and rape members of the same African tribes that have already been ethnically cleansed in Darfur itself. I've spent the last three days along the Chad-Sudan border, where this brutal war is unfolding. But "war" doesn't feel like the right term, for that implies combat between armies. What is happening here is more like what happens in a stockyard. Militias backed by Sudan race on camels and pickup trucks into Chadian villages and use machine guns to mow down farming families, whose only offense is that they belong to the wrong tribes and have black skin.
God bless Nick Kristoff for his reporting, but does anyone listen?
Sudan's aim seems to be to overthrow Chad's president and install a pawn in his place, in part because this would allow Sudan's Army to attack rebels in Darfur from both directions.Regardless of whether the rebels succeed in overthrowing Chad's government, they could ignite a new civil war in Chad. Much will depend on whether the French will use their military base in Chad to fight any Sudanese-sponsored invasion; the French aren't saying what they'll do.
There seems to be agreement that the presence of the US or Nato would exacerbate things. In the meanwhile the AU asks for UN help, the UN asks for EU help, and everyone takes an, "I'm not gonna try it; you try it" attitude (see here).By the time they decide, there won't be anyone left to save. This has been going on for years for all love.
