According to the UN website the "Security Council members scheduled consultations on a draft resolution designed to address the crisis."
Looks like they are inching closer to doing something. I was listening to the CBC Radio World Report this morning and they said (I am quoting from memory) that the UN will give Sudan another 30 days before the impose (or I guess vote on) sanctions. The CBC report claimed that 10,000 refugees will die in this 30 day period. This is too frustrating for me to try to come up with some witty comment, so I won't even try.
According to the CBC website Egypt will try to block any vote on a sanction. However they are not on the UN Security Council, which is:
Permanent: China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States
Elected: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Brazil, Chile, Germany, Pakistan, Philippines, Romania, Spain
Aside: Am I the only one who had never heard of Benin? They are in Western Africa, Niger borders on the north and Nigeria on the east. According to the CIA website the religions of Benin is 50% indigenous (which may or may not similiar to the animists of the Darfur refugees, although I realize this is a mental leap, exposing my ignorance of African traditional religions), 30% Christian and 20 Muslim.
As I stated earlier, France has vowed to veto any sanctions (I read this on the BBC website, but I can't find the link now). I guess we have to wait 30 more days to see what happens.
It is interesting (to me anyway) to note the news release on the UN site stresses the lack of humanitarian aid for Darfur and Chad. I agree they need money, but what about the "root causes", to use the term so important to thinkers on the left. The systematic murder of the non-Arab Sudanese won't stop through humanitarian aid. Until that is stopped that need for aid will only increase.
