By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive
UNITED NATIONS, July 20 -- Sudan's UN Ambassador Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman narrowly interpreted to Inner City Press on Wednesday the July 19 statement by Foreign Minister Ali Karti on Southern Kordofan that “if there's an agreement with local leaders specifying the sending of foreign troops, it will be welcome.”
When Inner City Press first asked him about it, Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman said Karti was referring to “international forces, not peacekeepers, not UN.”
Inner City Press had asked the US Ambassador Susan Rice about Karti's quote as she went into the Security Council. “I don't quite know what to think of that,” Rice said.
Now Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman has told Inner City Press that she should look at history, that in the run up to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement there was a deal, in Southern Kordofan, involving the US, Norway and UK.
Sudan is harkening back to that, he said, but is referring only to a small, “high ranking” force on monitors.
When asked how many people, Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman replied, “ten to fifteen.” It has been speculated that Karti's quote was related to a July 20 deadline set in the resolution winding down the UN Mission in Sudan. But only ten to fifteen?
When asked from what countries, Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman said they “could be European.” But again: only ten to fifteen? The representative of another Security Council member, not unsympathetic to Khartoum, when Inner City Press conveyed this said, “Oh, that's far too small.” Watch this site.
