Thursday, November 02, 2006

I Double Dare You!

Blair warns Sudan close to "crunch point"
Tue Oct 31, 2006 1:36 PM GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Tony Blair warned Sudan on Tuesday it was nearing the "crunch point" for Khartoum to enforce the peace in Darfur or risk isolation and unspecified action by the international community.

Blair met Sudanese Vice President Salva Kiir in London and told him "everyone must stop fighting and resume dialogue with the people who did not sign up to the peace agreement," Blair's spokesman told reporters.

"We are reaching the crunch point. It's important that the Sudanese government be in no doubt at all of our seriousness," he said at a briefing about the two leaders' talks.

Blair told Kiir there must be "clear progress" by November 24 when African Union leaders meet to discuss Darfur.

More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million driven from their homes to live in camps in Sudan and across the border in Chad since the start of fighting in Darfur in 2003.

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