Rwandan troops head to west Sudan Sunday

NAIROBI, Kenya - A contingent of Rwandan troops heads to Darfur this weekend - the first foreign soldiers to deploy in western Sudan, where thousands have been killed in communal strife that some are calling genocide.

Their main mission is to protect 80 African Union truce observers there. But with a somewhat vague mandate, and Arabic nomads still attacking African farm villages, the 154 Rwandans could easily find themselves defending civilians and getting drawn into the conflict.

The deployment comes amid intense international and regional efforts to end the bloodshed in Darfur, which has caused more than 1-million farmers to flee their homes and left some 2.2-million people in urgent need of food and other aid.

On Friday, Sudan said President Omar el-Bashir ordered tribal leaders in Darfur to form security forces to disarm the Arab militias blamed for the killings of 30,000 people over the past 18 months.

But human rights groups and aid workers say earlier Sudanese pledges to improve security in Darfur have not been fulfilled and attacks on civilians continue.

In Geneva, meanwhile, the United Nations' World Food Program said it had reached a deal with rebel groups in Darfur to allow the agency to truck in food supplies from Libya. The aid agency hoped to begin the shipments over the weekend.

The Rwandan troops will leave Sunday for al-Fasher, Darfur's main city, in an operation that will be a major test for the African Union. The union was established two years ago to replace the Organization of African Unity, which over the years failed to intervene effectively in the continent's wars and insurrections.

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