Sudan retaliates over Darfur
Published: February 4 2008 02:00
Nowhere are the stakes of the battle for control of Chad's capital N'Djamena likely to be higher than in Sudan's Darfur region.
Experts say Khartoum is backing the Chad rebel attack in retaliation for Chadian President Idriss Déby's support for rebels in Darfur. If Mr Déby falls, say experts, Sudan would encourage the Chadian rebels to drive Darfur rebels from havens Mr Déby once gave them in eastern Chad.
Some analysts say Sudan may also have encouraged Chad's rebels to pre-empt a deployment of European Union troops to protect Darfur refugees in eastern Chad. Sudan has also stalled deployment of a African Union-United Nations force in Darfur.
The fall of the Déby regime would be a huge win for Khartoum, said John Prendergast of the Enough Project advocacy. "Their objective is to cut off supply routes for the Darfur rebellion and to make it more difficult for the EU to deploy . . in eastern Chad."
