The other war...

We must not forget that there are other wars happening and one of the nastier ones is in the Sudan -- Darfur specifically. Arab 'rebels' have been taking over fertile farm and grazing lands and moving the original non-Arab occupants out. Sherry at A Western Heart writes about a breakthrough: bq. In what is being called a breakthrough after two weeks of talks sponsored by the African Union the Sudanese government and rebel groups have signed two accords aimed at ending the crisis. bq. The security deal places a ban on military flights over the Darfur region, and the second deal will ease delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need. Clashes between government and rebels meant large pockets of Darfur are now "no-go areas" preventing the distribution of food to nearly 200,000 refugees. But wait -- weren't the United Nations already working there? Sherry cites an article in the Christian Science Monitor quoting Henry Boshoff: bq. In the end, "It's not a question of whether it might work. It's got to work," says Henry Boshoff, a military analyst at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, South Africa. The main reason: "Who else is going to do it?" he asks. There's an effective deadlock in the UN Security Council over Sudan. Nations like China and France have essentially blocked US efforts to slap sanctions or take other actions against the Sudanese regime. The US and EU "decided this was the way to get past the deadlock," says Mr. Boshoff. And what are we doing (from the same CSM article): bq. Into this fray comes the 322nd Air Expeditionary Group of the US Air Force, based in Ramstein, Germany. They set up camp at Rwanda's main airport, surrounded by rolling hills and turquoise mountain lakes. From there they've ferried troops, supplies, and equipment - including armored personnel carriers - 1,000 miles north into Darfur. Besides planes, the US has pledged $300 million to the Darfur effort. The European Union has also pledged $125 million. The money and airplanes are crucial because African countries notoriously have little of either. Reminds me of a song I heard recently: America, Fuck Yeah!