David Axe tours the refugee camps in Chad and wonders if the EUFOR mission is doing more harm than good in the Darfur/Chad conflicts. Indeed, in camps like Iridimi, Zaghawas commit one of the most heinous crimes of all -- recruiting children to fight the war in Darfur against the Sudanese government. It's a crime that occurs at night, when the aid workers are bunkered in their compounds outside town. It's a crime that everyone knows happens but few will discuss openly. But aid workers will talk about it off the record, and high-ranking U.N. officials allude to it without naming it explicitly. And it's a crime that some say the E.U. cordon around the U.N. camps helps make possible. The more secure the camps are, the better they are as bases and recruiting pools for the Darfuri rebels, according to the Irish soldier. I haven't been on the ground in Chad or Darfur, but his account rings true with everything I have studied on this. The problem is, what else can we do? There are no appealing offers on the table right now. In 2004 or 2005, things might have been easier. But since the AU mission was launched, but underfunded, the rebels have been the largest beneficiaries of the peacekeeping missions to the region. Rather than use this new power to resolve the conflict, they squandered it for short-term gains, which led to further infighting. Unfortunately, I don't know if there is any better (and realistic) way to deal with the conflict ...
Anytime
