World Crises | Reuters.com | Plans ready for UN Darfur force but not deployment

World Crises | Reuters.com | Plans ready for UN Darfur force but not deployment: "UNITED NATIONS, June 6 (Reuters) - The United Nations and the African Union were close to a deal on Wednesday on fielding 23,000 peacekeepers in Sudan's violent Darfur region, but full deployment is not expected until next year at the earliest.

The so-called 'hybrid' U.N.-A.U. force is the culmination of two earlier stages allowing the United Nations to bolster 7,000 beleaguered African Union troops.

Sudan has still to agree to the large force, after it refused to have an operation controlled solely by the United Nations. Top U.N. and AU officials approved a revised plan, which the AU's Peace and Security Committee and the U.N. Security Council are expected to endorse.

Should Sudan delay approval, the United States and Britain want to push for sanctions, including a no-fly zone over Darfur to help put an end to fighting that has uprooted more than 2 million people. Experts estimate 200,000 people have died." Read complete post here.