Arabs to help fund AU force in Darfur

KHARTOUM – Arab leaders agreed at a summit yesterday a 150-million-dollar aid package for cash-strapped African Union troops deployed in Sudan’s war-torn Darfur region.

The move came after summit host Sudan sought to win backing for its opposition to plans for the dispatch of UN peacekeepers to Darfur, where war, disease and famine have cost up to 300 000 lives in three years. Arab leaders stopped short of an outright rejection of wider international intervention in the conflict, but said any deployment of any other troops should have the approval of the government in Khartoum.The leaders endorsed a resolution to allocate US$150 million to the African troops over the next six months.- Nampa-AFPArab leaders stopped short of an outright rejection of wider international intervention in the conflict, but said any deployment of any other troops should have the approval of the government in Khartoum.The leaders endorsed a resolution to allocate US$150 million to the African troops over the next six months.- Nampa-AFP