More Peacekeepers Going to Darfur

The African Union said Sunday that it would send more peacekeeping troops to Sudan’s Darfur region and strengthen the soldiers’ role in protecting civilians.

The underfunded and ill-equipped African Union force has had little success in halting ethnic fighting that has killed at least 200,000 people and chased 2.5 million from their homes in the last three years.

Aid groups say continued fighting is worsening a humanitarian disaster.

The war pits Arab militiamen allied with the Arab-dominated national government in Khartoum against ethnic Africans who rebelled in a long-standing dispute over land and water.

The African Union mission was scheduled to wrap up at the end of this month and be replaced by a larger United Nations force, but Sudan’s leaders opposed such a move and the African Union agreed to stay on at least until year’s end.

African Union leaders are completing plans to add 1,200 soldiers to the 7,000-strong force, officials said. More soldiers are possible if the North Atlantic Treaty Organization provides adequate logistics support and the Arab League and other international donors offer funding, the officials said.

The Arab League backs Sudan’s opposition to the U.N. Security Council resolution calling for 20,000 U.N.-led soldiers to take over peacekeeping in Darfur.