EU foreign ministers warn over Darfur war crimes

European Union foreign ministers today told Sudan government and rebel fighters they would be “held accountable” for war crimes in Darfur and called on both sides to end violations of a cease-fire there.

The EU ministers in Brussels said the Sudanese government had a “responsibility to protect its citizens from all violence and to guarantee respect for human rights,” and should accept a UN peacekeeping force in Darfur.

They also called on both sides of the conflict “to permit the unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance”.

In a declaration adopted after talks on the Darfur crisis, they warned “those who decide and carry out policies leading to death and suffering in Darfur will be held accountable,” backing similar comments by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan earlier this week.

However, the EU ministers made no reference to the possibility European governments would file cases at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands.

Diplomats said they kept out such a reference, as EU nations planned to launch a fresh diplomatic initiative on the margins of the UN general assembly next week in New York to get Sudan to agree to allow in a UN force.

Many observers believe Sudan has dug in against a UN deployment in Darfur because it fears the force will hunt down officials and government allies suspected of war crimes for atrocities against Darfur’s ethnic Africans.

Khartoum has argued that a UN force would violate the country’s sovereignty.

In June a prosecutor for the ICC reported to the UN Security Council that a “significant number” of massacres, in which hundreds of people were killed at a time, had occurred in Darfur and certain tribes had been singled out for attack. The prosecutor added Sudan’s courts had shown little desire to investigate crimes against humanity.

The EU foreign ministers also voiced alarm at renewed fighting in northern Darfur and the recent military build-up in Darfur of Sudanese government forces.

“Any military action will only further aggravate the already alarming humanitarian situation,” they said. “The Sudanese government should stop their military action in Darfur, abide by the cease-fire agreement and respect their commitments.”

European nations are trying to put added pressure on Khartoum to stick to its commitments made to the international community.

More than 200,000 people have been killed and over 2 million have fled their homes since fighting erupted in 2003, when ethnic African tribes revolted against the Arab-led Khartoum government.

A May peace agreement signed by the government and one of the major rebel groups was supposed to help end the conflict in Darfur.

Instead, it has sparked months of fighting between rival rebel factions that has added to the toll of the dead and displaced.