U.N. evacuates 71 workers from Darfur

[oberliner]

CAIRO, Egypt - The United Nations evacuated 71 aid workers from the largest refugee camp in Darfur Tuesday after gunmen looted their compounds, leaving some 130,000 refugees virtually without humanitarian help.

It was the largest single instance of an aid worker evacuation since the U.N. launched its large-scale humanitarian campaign in Darfur in 2004. Over the past year, worsening violence in the war-ravaged region in western Sudan has made delivering vital aid to hundreds of thousands of residents difficult to impossible.

More than 20 gunmen raided several humanitarian compounds in the South Darfur refugee camp of Gereida late Monday, harassing staff and stealing vehicles, communication equipment and money, the U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.

Though no aid workers were hurt in the attacks, the situation was considered too unsafe and the U.N. said it airlifted the 71 out on Tuesday.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061219/ap_on_re_af/darfur_aid_1

[pinto]

1. Ugh. Not good news. Darfur seems to be dissolving before the whole world.

[Lurking Dem]

2. What will the UN do

when no one can get humanitarian aid where it needs to go? Will they then decide that decisive action needs to be taken?

[rmgarrette64]

3. No. They won't.

They can't actually take decisive action, even if they wanted to - and they don't. The UN will not call on the US to provide military support, after the Iraq debacle, and without the US military, there's simply nothing they can do in Darfur. I'd love to blame this wholly on Bush, but this particular dance took two to screw up.

R. Garrett

[Lurking Dem]

4. What about NATO?

I feel very frustrated watching this happen and writing checks for aid that apparently can't help anybody.

[seriousstan]

5. The UN saves 71 of their own, Hell of a job Kofi. I guess they ran out of 12 yr old

girls to rape.

The UN is a waste of space and never learns. In the words of a UN peacekeeping force commander ,Lieutenant General Romeo Dallaire,.....

"I still believe that if an organisation decided to wipe out the 320 mountain gorillas there would be still more of a reaction by the international community to curtail or to stop that than there would be still today in attempting to protect thousands of human beings being slaughtered in the same country."

[Mojorabbit]

6. Didn't they have security?

It seems if it is known you have security that would deter this kind ot thing.