The Sudanese government recently accepted a watered down version of the UN resolution to send 26,000 peacekeepers to Darfur. There are two aspects about it which are very disappointing.

Firstly, the peacekeeping force is not allowed to seize away or collect arms belonging to the various warring parties. Secondly, it will not be able to pursue and arrest alleged war criminals sought by the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

When one analyzes how the resolution has been watered down, it comes as no surprise that the Sudanese government accepted it.

The whole spectacle is simply the lesser of two evils. At least now, unlike previously, when all that happened was simply talk with no results, things can actually move forward. In the coming months we shall await anxiously the decisions of concerned countries on contributing troops for the peacekeeping mission. Materialization of the resolution into action is the next step.

Meanwhile, the Arab media is still largely ignoring the issue of Darfur. Until now, we still have not witnessed any real investigative journalism on the issue.