Annan says he hopes Sudan will accept UN force

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan today said he hoped Sudan would "ultimately" accept a United Nations peacekeeping force for Darfur, despite president Omar al-Bashir’s continued opposition.

Speaking in Geneva, Annan said he hoped an aid conference in Brussels next month would produce more support for the African Union’s force, but that longer term “I still think a United Nations peacekeeping force will be needed.”