For now, at least. Not everyone is as convinced though.
The six-year war in Darfur is effectively over, according to the United Nations military commander in the region. The conflict that has cost 300,000 lives, according to UN estimates, and displaced up to 2.7 million people has ended, General Martin Luther Agwai said yesterday.
"As of today, I would not say there is a war going on in Darfur," the outgoing head of the joint UN-African Union mission told reporters in the Sudanese capital Khartoum. "Militarily there is not much. What you have is security issues more now. Banditry, localised issues, people trying to resolve issues over water and land at a local level. But real war as such, I think we are over that."
However, the Nigerian general's comments drew an angry response from Western campaigners and some Sudan observers. One regional analyst, Gill Lusk, said the remarks were unhelpful because they could lead people to believe that Darfur's problems had been solved. "There has been a large decline in fighting in Darfur, and that is undoubtedly a good thing for the people," she told the BBC. "But it is the government that turns the tap on and off – they can restart the violence whenever they want."
