The surreptitious Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) has caused much rancor among Arab Janjaweed militias. Minni Minawi, whom for a long time they singled out as a contemptible leader and a man to kill, has found himself fourth in line in the national power struggle. No other Darfuri Arab has received parallel recognition. After obeying the government and killing, displacing, raping all these people, they thought they deserved better.

This is not without consequence. It means that the government mistrust and only periodically arms Arab janjaweed militias. As we reported in out last bulletin, some Arabs, specifically the Malalia, have formed a rebel Popular Force Troop and taken the same complaints as the African Darfouri. They attack police outposts, but not the Arab militias backed by Khartoum. On the other hand, reconciliation has occurred between groups of Africans and Arabs. The extent and numbers are unknown, but these Arabs deserve encouragement from local and European media coverage in spite of the fact that they still bear arms. Offended in being type cast as Janjaweed, they worry about reprisal on the part of Africans. And if they harbor concerns about the arrival of foreign troops, it's because they fear trial before the ICC.

For a real peace to occur, the Arab tribes must be included in the negotiations. “Nothing will disarm them unless their leaders are convinced there is more to gain from peace than from war, thus giving them a reason to refuse to be used as proxy fighters by the State”.

Elsewhere, in southern Darfur, Arabs have refused to join the Janjaweed militias. Perhaps because many of them served in pro-government militias during the North-South conflict, they realized early on what was being asked of them. It is probable that living in a less scattered environment, they were better able to resist government pressure.

The government claims it can do nothing to prevent confrontation between Janjaweed and “Africans”; that what occurs is nothing more that a conflict between nomads and sedentary farmers. However, the authorities intervened robustly when severe fighting broke out between the nomad Habania and the Fellata farmers over claims of stolen cattle. A commission of inquiry began immediately, and intertribal reconciliations were stressed etc...

On the other hand, the government did not intervene when hostilities erupted between the Turjum camel herders originally from Chad, and the Rizeigat. The result was burned villages and murdered children. These clashes continue. UN personnel were trying to determine the extent of the carnage and its impact on the war in Darfur when the leader of the Turjum paid a visit to the governor in South-Darfur. The chief complained that his people were being attacked by an Arab Rizeigat militia equipped with land cruisers and heavy weapons. On March 31, 60 of his tribesmen were slain. The chief further claimed the Rizeigat are armed by the government as the Security Services believe that the Turjum have links to the army of the National Redemption Front. Boldly the Turjum chief asked the governor for enhanced protection and an inquiry into the provenance of the arms.