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Friday, March 17, 2006

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WASHINGTON -- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is calling for the appointment of a U.S. special envoy to Sudan, where a three-year rebellion in the Darfur region has left an estimated 180,000 people dead and displaced 2 million more.

"This special envoy would signal that bringing peace and stability to Sudan is a priority for the United States," Pelosi, D-Calif., said in prepared text of a speech to be delivered Friday at the Center for National Policy.

"To do this we must stop the violence, bring the parties to the negotiating table and get humanitarian relief to the people who need it."

Her office provided an advance copy of the speech late Thursday to The Associated Press.

Pelosi led a delegation of lawmakers to Sudan last month, and some of them met with President Bush on Thursday and endorsed creating a special envoy post, she said. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said the United States would consider taking that step.

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A White House spokesman didn't immediately respond to a request for comment late Thursday.

Several rounds of peace talks in Darfur have been stalled by internal divisions in the rebel movements and have failed to find a lasting settlement.

The United Nations has described the Darfur conflict as the world's gravest humanitarian crisis. The United States has described it as genocide. The House on Thursday agreed to spend $439 million on humanitarian and other assistance for Darfur, part of a $92 billion spending bill for Iraq, Afghanistan and Hurricane Katrina.

"More will be needed and the United States should encourage other nations to donate," Pelosi said.

The African Union decided March 10 to extend the mandate of its 7,000-strong force in Darfur for six months, when the United Nations is expected to take over.

But the Sudanese government has opposed U.N. control. The government is widely alleged to have unleashed Arab militias who carried out sweeping atrocities against ethnic African villagers in Darfur.

© 2006 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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