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As War Looms in Abyei, UN Spins About No Go Zones & Flying Haroun

UNITED NATIONS, March 14 -- With Khartoum reportedly revving up for a war on Abyei, and the SPLM in Southern Sudan breaking off talks with them, the UN is engaged in obfuscation and spin, calling its flight of a indicted war criminal to Abyei successful and refusing to acknowledge where it has agreed it will not go.

Last week and again today, Inner City Press has asked the UN about its decision to fly Ahmed Haroun, indicted by the International Criminal Court for organizing nomadic tribes to burn villages in Darfur, into Abyei to organize nomadic tribes.

The UN has defended the flights by claiming that Haroun is making things in Abyei better. But they are only getting worse, with nomadic tribes burning down villages. Wasn't that was Haroun was indicted for in the first place?

Menkerios (r) with Mbeki & Hillary Clinton, Haroun & Abyei answers not shown

On March 11, Inner City Press asked UN Acting Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq

Inner City Press: I wanted to ask you on Sudan. There is, a document has come out showing that the SPLM [Sudan People’s Liberation Movement] or the southern military officials asked the UN not to go to these regions in Jonglei State where they are fighting with forces of Mr. [George] Athor, and seems pretty bad in the sense that the UN document, as reported by AP, says in the no-go zones, there should be no UN operations, land, air or both will be carried out in the no-go areas. These are areas in which civilians are being killed by both sides. I wonder if you could state what is UNMIS’s [United Nations Mission in Sudan’s] rules of engagement when civilians are being killed in the area in which they are spending a billion dollars for a peacekeeping operation?

Acting Deputy Spokesperson Haq: UNMIS is trying, actually, to get access to this area. As our people on the ground have repeatedly said, we are having problems with the various forces on the ground, including the SPLM, but others as well. In terms of the freedom of movement of UNMIS, we are working with the parties on the ground to make sure that we have the freedom of movement to do our mandated tasks.

Inner City Press: But is this document accurate, in which the UN missed, the UN put out a document to, both NGOs as well, saying that there should be no UN activity, not just by air but by all the means that I listed in those areas, is that accurate?

Acting Deputy Spokesperson: No, I don’t have any comment on that. You can follow up with UNMIS if you want. But my basic point is that UNMIS has been trying to get freedom of movement, and it has been imploring all of the various parties on the ground to provide it with the freedom of movement it needs to go about its work.

Then over the weekend, the SPLM announced that it won't negotiate any more with the NCP in Khartoum. Inner City Press on Monday asked Haq:

Inner City Press: there was an announcement on Sunday that the Southern Sudanese Government would stop negotiating with the North, including on Abyei, because of, they are alleging that the North has funded the Misseriya tribes. I wanted to know what UNMIS [United Nations Mission in Sudan] plans to do about that and what, how this relates to the flying of Ahmed Haroun, the indicted war criminal, to Abyei, which the UN said was, had resulted in an end to these type of problems with the Misseriya.

Acting Deputy Spokesperson Haq: Yeah, about the role that the UN Mission in Sudan is playing: the Secretary-General’s Special Representative [for Sudan], Haile Menkerios, participated in two meetings of the Standing Committee on 9 and 10 March in Khartoum. At both meetings, the parties were unable to move beyond the issue of the deployment of Joint Integrated Units troops to Diffra, which the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) linked with the complete withdrawal of the so-called “oil police” out of the Abyei area. Mr. Menkerios continues to talk to both parties to find a suitable solution to the problem.

The UN Mission in Sudan has verified that both sides have reinforced their positions within the Abyei area, including the confirmed presence of Sudanese Armed Forces and Sudanese People’s Liberation Army troops not affiliated with the Abyei Joint Integrated Units. The exact size and type of reinforcements is difficult to determine due to the continuing denial of freedom of movement for the UNMIS force.

Mr. Menkerios has urged both sides to restrain their respective elements on the ground, to minimize violence while the political leadership discusses a final solution to the status of Abyei. But our diplomatic efforts are, in fact, ongoing.

Inner City Press: Was there any, I’d asked, I guess, Mr. [Martin] Nesirky, to confirm that 40 Dinka youth had stoned the helicopter on which Ahmed Haroun was flown in on, despite the very glowing description given here. Is there? He said that he was going to search with UNMIS, I think, that’s how I understood it…

Acting Deputy Spokesperson: No, no, I believe Mr. Nesirky did inform you at one of the briefings last week that there had been a demonstration on the ground but that the situation was restored and calm was restored very quickly.

Here is what Nesirky said on March 10, as transcribed by the UN:

Inner City Press: I wanted to also ask about this flight of Ahmed Haroun, there has been a new report that when he was flown into Abyei that actually 400 Dinka youth stormed the UN’s compound, angered at his presence and that McClatchy/Miami Herald story says that [Salah] Gosh, who is this former intelligence chief, and Haroun were evacuated by helicopter from their visit to Abyei. So, I wanted to know, one, can you confirm that in fact the UN flew him in and then upon protest by youth, Dinka youth, flew him out? Is that true?

Spokesperson Nesirky: Well, I can tell you that Governor Haroun was transported there and back again. That is correct. I have already said that. As for what happened at the time around the location where the meeting was being held, there were some disturbances that ended peacefully, and if I have more details precisely on what happened, then I’ll let you know.

Inner City Press: But I guess my thing is that, when it first came up, it was presented, this is a very positive visit, that he’d brought peace and, in fact, if 400 youth protested him and destroyed vehicles and he left under fire, it seems to… would the UN fly him there again?

Spokesperson Nesirky: As I say, I would need to check on the precise details. There were protests; that is the case. But also there was a result, in the form of the agreement that I have mentioned before. But if I have more detail, I’ll be happy to give it to you.

The UN in four days after that statement was not able to get any more “details” about its flying of an indicted war criminal; the UN would apparently be willing to fly Ahmed Haroun again.

Footnote: Meanwhile, despite attempts to highlight the US Mission to the UN's failure to provide its position on the UN flying a Sudanese government official indicted for war crimes in Darfur, the US has still not stated its position, nor responded to questions submitted in writing about Abyei. When the US Mission or even the new State Department spokesman in Washington responds, we will report it. Watch this site.