Sudan asks for Arab support to the African forces

The Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Othman Ismael called on the Arab states to support the efforts made by the African Union to fix the situation in Darfur. Ismael added in a joint press conference on Saturday in Khartoum with the secretary general of the Arab League Amr Moussa that his country awaits direct Arab support for the African forces.

For his part, Moussa indicated that the situation in Darfur is improving at the security and political level. Moussa said following his return back from a visit to North Darfur that the Arab League fully supports the efforts of the African Union in the region, noting that he had listened to a detailed report from the leadership of the Union's forces over the developments of conditions.

He explained that the Arab states "reject plans aiming to implant partition among Arab and African tribes who are linked by kinships." The Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick called following his tour in Darfur for the increase of the African forces, noting that certain problems are still existed in the camps of refugees.

Meantime, the ICRC (Red Cross) said it had started sending aid to the people of Darfur by air because of the risky road because of the continued armed attacks against the relief convoys. A spokesman for the ICRC said that the committee will dispatch 12 flights weekly during the two next months from Khartoum to Neyala and al-Fasher cities.