The bill urges Bush to freeze assets of the Khartoum government

WASHINGTON, December 24 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – US President George W. Bush signed on Thursday, December 23, a bill on slapping sanctions on Sudan over allegedly the situation the western troubled region of Darfur.

The nonbinding "Comprehensive Peace in Sudan Act of 2004" bill calls on the Bush administration to impose a ban on travel of Sudanese officials and freeze assets of government and military officials as well as businesses controlled by the Khartoum government and the ruling National Congress Party.

The legislation also incorporates measures to stop the Sudanese imports of oil, according to Reuters.

Darfur is known for having large potential reserves of oil and other natural resources.

The western Sudanese region urges the Bush administration to encourage the UN members to take similar steps.

The UN Security Council on September 18 passed a Washington-drafted resolution threatening to "envisage" sanctions against Sudan if it did not reign in the Janjaweed militias blamed for violence in Darfur.

Sudanese officials reacted with vehement skepticism over the US move.

"America is taking actions that would only serve escalating sentiments against it. It punishes itself," said Magzoub Al-Khalifa, the head of a government delegation negotiating a peaceful settlement to the civil war in the south.

Sudanese observers and analysts say the fact that draft resolution stressed a ban on the exports of oil from Sudan means to punish Chinese companies, which dominate the flourishing oil sector in the African country.

They cite the invasion of Iraq on false pretexts as an evidence of a feared repletion with the Sudan case.

Although the US made the case for attacking Iraq on the search for weapons mass destruction, none of these banned arms have been found in the country _ which has the world’s second largest oil reserves.

Considering to Act

The Bush administration said it was considering whether to put the sanctions into effect.

"Those provisions regarding the sanctions are under review by the administration," a White House official said.

"The United States remains committed to bringing an end to the violence in Darfur and will continue to consult with members of the UN Security Council on the appropriate next steps."

The bill also urges the Bush administration to assist in the deployment of additional African Union forces in the war-torn region for maintaining security.

UN Sanctions

The Bush move came hours after UN Secretary General Kofi Annan threatened similar sanctions against Sudan.

On Tuesday, December 21, Annan told his year-end news conference the UN Security Council could also consider sanctions, which it had threatened, against specific individuals in Sudan.

Annan said one day later that the 15-nation Security Council had to take new decisions urgently to curb escalating violence in Darfur.

Annan told reporters the UN and the council should conduct a "real reassessment" of actions toward Sudan "because quite frankly our approach is not working."

"These kinds of decisions and actions have to be decided here and taken here, and so, whilst a trip to the region may some time be necessary, the reassessment is urgent," he said.

Annan said the council also might consider measures to put pressure on combatants and "hold some of the individuals who are responsible accountable."

Algeria's ambassador, Abdullah Baali, said he did not expect any dramatic council action until mid-January when the United Nations releases a report on atrocities in Darfur.

"If things have not improved, then it would be necessary to reassess the situation," he told Reuters.

Annan is expected to report on violence in Darfur before the end of January, probably including names of suspected perpetrators. The report would evaluate whether genocide has taken place there.

"For now, the council has sent a strong message to both sides calling on them to respect the cease-fire, engage in goodwill negotiations, and made clear it would consider a wide range of options," Baali said.

To date, Russia and China, among others, have opposed penalties, although Chinese envoys said they were not ruling out any options.

According to an Amnesty International report last month, Russia and China are the main suppliers. It said Khartoum had imported 12 MiG29 fighters from Russia as recently as July while China over the past decade has exported more than 40 fighter jets and dozens of helicopters to Sudan.