The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday imposed sanctions on four senior Sudanese individuals who are considered a “threat to the region.”
The council was addressing the atrocities against civilians in Darfur, Sudan.
A resolution favored by 12 members of the 15-member Security Council, with three abstentions, placed restrictions on the assets and international travel of the following four people:
1) Major General Ja’far Muhammad Al-Hasan, who commands the Western Military Region for the Sudanese Air Force
2) Adam Ya’qoub Shant, who commands the Sudanese Liberation Army
3) Jibril ‘Abd Al-Karim Badr, the field commander of the National Movement for Reform rebel group
4) Paramount chief of the Jaloul Tribe in North Darfur Sheikh Mousa Hilal
Representatives of the three countries which abstained from voting on sanctions – China, Russia and Qatar – said the sanctions would have a negative impact on the peace talks taking place in Abuja, Nigeria. The council urged that these talks meet the African Union’s April 30 deadline for a peace deal for Darfur.
More than 180,000 have died in the Darfur fighting and more than two million people have been displaced. Thousands have fled to the neighboring Chad.
In December, 2005, the Council imposed an arms embargo on Sudan and paved the way for targeted sanctions against individuals.
The conflict in Darfur began in February 2003 between Arab groups known as Janjaweed, who are said to be backed by the government, and African inhabitants in the area. It primarily concerns access to water and disputes over grazing land.
A top U.N. official recently warned that relief operations in Darfur are on the verge of a breakdown due to a worsening humanitarian situation, government obstruction, rebel violence and weakened support of the international community.