What captions I would have supplied for “Don’t Forget Darfur,” New York Times, February 11, 2016 |
Genocide moves west with Jebel Marra offensive | http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/12/opinion/dont-forget-darfur.html?_r=0
How is it possible that genocide is accelerating in Darfur? The men responsible…
Sudanese Second Vice President Hassabo Mohammed Abdel Rahman on the goal of the 2015 Sudan Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces offensive against the African tribal populations of East Jebel Marra: “we want to clear the area of insects…” (December 2014, cited by Human Rights Watch)
Infamous Janjaweed leader Musal Hilal. In August 2004 a memorandum from his Misteriya headquarters in North Darfur made clear the intention of Khartoum’s counter-insurgency campaign: “Change the demography of Darfur. Empty if of African tribes.”
Génocidaire-in-Chief, Omar Hassan al-Bashir; an arrest warrant for al-Bashir has been issued by the International Criminal Court on multiple counts of genocide and crimes against humanity
General and First Vice President Bakri Hassan Saleh, the military face of the regime at present and likely successor to al-Bashir; he is a central figure in the radical 2011 militarizing of the regime. He has signed off on some of the worst attrocities in Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile
General Abdel Rahim Mohamed Hussein, former Minister of Interior during the worst years of the Darfur genocide and subsequently Minister of Defense; an arrested warrant has been issued by the International Criminal Court, charging Hussein with massive crimes against humanity
Scott Gration, Barack Obama’s first selection, as president, for the critical post of special envoy for Sudan; Gration’s incompetence and ignorance are legendary, and his appointment was nothing more than political payback for Gration’s assistance during the Obama presidential campaign. He did not know Sudan, had no diplomatic experience, and no relevant linguistic skills. He thought Khartoum’s génocidaires could be persuaded to change their behavior with “cookies…gold stars, and smiley faces” (Washington Post, Sept 9, 2009)
Former U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan, Princeton Lyman: ““we do not want to see the ouster of the [Khartoum] regime, nor regime change. We want to see the regime carrying out reform via constitutional democratic measures.” Utterly preposterous—there has been no more destructive policy pronouncement by any American official.
President Barack Obama bears final responsibility for U.S. policy; he declared as a candidate that Darfur was a “stain on our souls,” and that as president he did not intend to “abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter”—including in Darfur. He has reneged completely on these words and the “moral imperative” he spoke of in confronting genocide. (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEd583-fA8M)