AMIS FOCUSED ON PROTECTING FORCES, NOT CIVILIANS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 002750 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/SPG AND AF/SE E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/27/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV KPKO AU SU UN SUBJECT: AMIS FOCUSED ON PROTECTING FORCES, NOT CIVILIANS Classified By: P/E Chief E. Whitaker, Reason: Sections 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) In a November 25 meeting in El Fasher with CDA Hume, Major General Luke Aprezi, force commander of the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS),lamented his inability to ensure the safety of his troops and protect the civilians of Darfur. Despite initial indications that Aprezi would improve both the morale and the effectiveness of AMIS when he assumed his command in late summer, reports indicate that both have deteriorated in recent weeks. Though Aprezi couched his reticence to promote a more secure environment in concern for his men, his demeanor indicated that he had resigned himself to inefficacy, and he was unaware of any discussions on the introduction of an AU-United Nations hybrid force. "We don't want to fight back," he said. "We are peacekeeping troops." ¶2. (C) Aprezi and Deputy Force Commander Brigadier General F. ¶M. Kamanzi catalogued a list of deficiencies in AMIS' capacity. They claimed that their troops were unable to defend themselves because they lacked shovels and sandbags to construct fox holes and concertina wire to break attacks. Kamanzi also said that his forces have fled from ambushes on foot because their armored personnel vehicles were broken. "If you want me to do something, you have to empower me to the extent that I can defend myself," added Aprezi. Dodging questions from CDA Hume about why the AU had not yet utilized the 50 million dollars in funding that was authorized by the USG and why AMIS was unable even to secure areas of Darfur where there was little fighting, Aprezi returned again to the force protection issue and said that he could not defend certain areas and not others. ¶3. (C) Despite the Cease-fire Commission (CFC) having developed a Janjaweed disarmament plan, Aprezi admitted that AMIS has had no discussions with the Sudanese government on implementation nor has it begun to verify the positions of forces based on maps presented during the talks that culminated in the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA). CDA Hume questioned whether the AMIS command would raise any of these issues at the AU Peace and Security Commission meeting in Abuja on November 29. "We will tell the PSC that our soldiers are fair game, are under threat," responded Aprezi. HUME