SUDAN, AU IMPLICATED IN SOUTH DARFUR ATTACK

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KHARTOUM 001596 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF A/S FRAZER, AF S/E NATSIOS, AND AF/SPG NSC FOR PITTMAN AND HUDSON ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/09/2012 TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS KPKO UN AU SU SUBJECT: SUDAN, AU IMPLICATED IN SOUTH DARFUR ATTACK REF: KHARTOUM 01587 Classified By: CDA Alberto Fernandez, Reason: Sections 1.4 (b) and (d) -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (U) Please see para. 10 for an action request. ¶2. (C) A Sudanese Government representative, the UN, and the SLM have reported that AMIS requested SAF intervention in Muhajeria, South Darfur, precipitating an attack that has left at least 30 civilians dead and an equal number missing. SLM officials predict that the violence, raging in South Darfur since late August, will next spread to Dar Salam. The NCP is blaming the Muhajeria attack on "tribal clashes" while providing few details, and the AU has not issued an official statement on the incident. While the whereabouts of SLM chairman Minni Minawi are unknown--even to his closest aides--SLM leaders have requested that the U.S. issue a statement demanding an end to the violence and calling for an independent investigation. A transfer of the existing resentment in Darfur toward UNAMID, through both forces' association with Joint Special Representative Adada and AMIS Force Commander Agwai, will severely impact the deployment of the hybrid force. The attack also threatens the upcoming Darfur peace negotiations by underlining the decline of the SLM, the DPA's sole signatory which controls Muhajeria, and discouraging other rebel groups to participate in the peace process. Please see para. 9 for an SLM statement on the attack. End summary. -------------- AMIS Requested SAF Action -------------- ¶3. (C) The Sudanese Government and the AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS) are implicated in the attack on Muhajeria, South Darfur that began October 8, according to one Government official, the UN, and the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) (reftel). Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mutriff Siddiq told CDA Fernandez on October 9 that AMIS requested the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) take action in Muhajeria. A UN official reported to Poloff on October 10 that the SAF spokesman confirmed that Government forces had taken action in Muhajeria in response to a request from AMIS, which feared a repeat of the September 28 attack on its camp near Haskanita, South Darfur. 
 ¶4. (C) Representatives of the SLM, meeting with CDA Fernandez on October 10, made the same assertion, saying that the Government was using Arab tribes in the area, which is controlled by the SLM per the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA), to perpetrate the violence. The attack came on three fronts, according to the SLM: 1) Arab militias on camels, 2) Janjaweed fighters on horses, and 3) Government forces. The SLM questioned the justification for an attack on Muhajeria itself because SLM and DPA non-signatory forces are located outside of the town. One SLM cadre speculated that the Government is attempting to scare the international community to disrupt the deployment of the UN-AU Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). Despite repeated attempts by the SLM leadership to seek detailed information from the National Congress Party (NCP)--including calls to Presidential Assistant Nafie Ali Nafie--the Government's response is limited to blaming "small, tribal clashes" for the violence. -------------- AMIS/UNAMID Credibility in Danger -------------- ¶5. (C) The AU gave the "green light" to the Sudanese Government, said the SLM representatives, because it feared a repeat of the September 28 attack on the AMIS camp near Haskanita, South Darfur. The SLM leaders predicted that the Government offensive would soon spread to nearby Dar Salam. Noting that the UN Security Council had condemned the attack on the AMIS camp near Haskanita, the SLM requested that the U.S. issue a statement warning Sudan against an expansion of the violence and calling for an impartial investigation into the attack. ¶6. (C) While the media has quoted AU Force Commander Martin Luther Agwai as confirming aerial bombing in the area, the AU has not issued an official statement on the incident. CDA KHARTOUM 00001596 002 OF 003 Fernandez said that the incident further damages AMIS' credibility in Darfur and endangers Joint Special Representative Rudolphe Adada and Agwai's ability to command the force. "Agwai is going to be a victim of the Government," concurred one SLM Leader. He added that the AU's refusal to discuss the matter with the SLM signified that "AMIS is condemning itself." -------------- SLM "Chained" to DPA -------------- ¶7. (C) Due to the lack of financial resources, the SLM lacks any leverage on the NCP, said the movement's representatives. "The SLM is chained to the DPA," commented one leader, "and the NCP thinks of the DPA as a gift. It's been like leading a chicken to the lion's den. Robert Zoellick disarmed us." Another SLM leader said that as the Government continued to violate the DPA, the non-signatories had no incentive for participating in the peace process. ¶8. (C) Reports place the number of dead in Muhajeria between 30 and 50, with approximately an equal number missing. AMIS headquarters reported on October 10 that the fatalities include seven individuals who were beheaded in front of the town's mosque. Civilians fled the area to seek refuge near the AMIS Military Group Site, which is providing water to the displaced population, though supplies are running low. The UN evacuated the two international non-governmental organizations operating in Muhajeria. -------------- SLM Statement -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The SLM presented CDA Fernandez with the following statement, which they had delivered to the AU on October 10 (Note: While the statement is signed by Minawi, SLM leaders admitted to Poloff that his whereabouts are unknown and the letter was in fact "signed on his behalf." End note.): (Begin Text) On October 8, 2007, the Sudan government forces (SAF/Janjaweed) launched unprovoked and well-planned attacks on Mahajiria town targeting SLM/A forces and innocent civilians (including children, women and disabled and elderly people). Women were reported to be raped. Helicopters and Antinof war planes were also used. As the result many people were killed, the town is looted, and houses were burnt and civilians were miserably displaced. It was even reported that some of these civilian victims were dragged out of mosques where they sought refuge. This attack came only after a week of Haskanita tragedy. The SLM/A believes that this attacks is part of GoS grand plan of totally undermining the Dafrur Peace Agreement (DPA). It clearly demonstrates the lack of any political commitment from the side of the government towards the DPA. The attack was carefully planed and launched. The GoS has been sending many signals indicating its intentions. It was reported that the government had approached the AU to offer "protection" for the AU forces in Mahajiria. If that was true then SLM/A want such truth to be known fully to the public. Further more if this story is true then the question is why the government has flatly rejected suggestion by the SLM/A of conducting joint patrolling for the safety of the AU operation and that of humanitarian organizations? The SLM/A sees this ceasefire violation as a dangers recipe for aggravating the already volatile security situation and may possibly jeopardize the efforts for the yet to be started Tripoli talks. The SLM/A calls for the AU to immediately dispatch the CFC to the scene and help in rescuing civilian victims and conduct investigation. The SLM/A also calls on the international community to condemn this violation in no uncertain terms, put pressure on the government to stop the attack and heed to the implementation of the DPA. International community should expedite an early, speedy, and unhindered deployment of the Hybrid Force. The UNSC should take all the necessary steps and appropriate KHARTOUM 00001596 003 OF 003 measures to enlist the perpetrators and bring them to the ICC. Finally the SLM/A asserts its full commitment and believe in the DPA and reiterate to go with it at any cost. Minni Minawi Chairman Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) Khartoum, Sudan (End Text) -------------- Comment and Action Request -------------- ¶10. (C) If the SAF are involved in the attack on Muhajeria, it would constitute the most significant Government violation of the DPA since the signing of the agreement. If AMIS requested Government intervention, it calls into question the credibility not just of AMIS but, by association, of the nascent UNAMID force. The attack on the AMIS group site in Haskanita, which was widely attributed to DPA non-signatory rebels, was a blatant signal that resentment toward AMIS runs deep in Darfur. An expansion of this resentment to UNAMID would severely impact the deployment of the hybrid force, by discouraging troop contributors and endangering its mission. The Muhajeria attack also threatens the political negotiations scheduled to begin in Libya on October 27 by underlining the decline of the DPA's sole signatory and discouraging other rebel groups to participate in the peace process. Post requests that the Department issue a statement demanding an end to the violence in South Darfur--to set a marker for the expansion of the conflict--and calling for a full investigation of recent events. End comment. FERNANDEZ