Foothold in Darfur

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The African Union (AU) is slated to hold a summit in Egypt for the first time since it emerged as a federal-style institution seeking to promote development and eliminate armed conflicts on the continent. These goals do not differ much from those of the Organisation of African Unity that preceded the AU. The only change is that African countries do not feel the same way about Arab issues or the Arab- Israeli conflict. For sometime now, Israel has been making friendships in Africa and altering the political priorities of the continent.

This is all a far cry from what happened after the June 1967 war. Back then, most African countries severed ties with Israel in solidarity with the Arabs. Since then, Israel has been trying to woo African countries. And once the Arab-Israeli peace process got underway, Israel made substantial inroads in Africa. Mindful of Africa's immense natural and strategic assets, Israel moved onto the offensive, applying pressure and blackmail tactics to get what it wants.

Israel's current involvement in Darfur is particularly suspicious. During a meeting between Tzipi Livni and several African envoys in Tel Aviv, the Israeli foreign minister said that her government wanted to help find a solution to the crisis in Darfur. One would think that Israel is perhaps the last country in the world that can mediate a crisis in an Arab country, especially one like Sudan that has no ties whatsoever with Israel. The only explanation is that Israel wants to take sides with the Darfur rebels against the Sudanese government.

Reports indicate that the Sudan Liberation Movement has opened an office in Tel Aviv. Israel is also said to be arming the rebels, training them in camps in Israel, sending military experts to rebel zones in Sudan, and disguising Mossad operatives as relief workers.

Abdullah Masar, adviser to the Sudanese president, says Sudan is under massive pressure to normalise its relations with Israel. The Darfur rebellion is being used as leverage to get Sudan to comply with Israel's demands. The Israelis and Americans now have their eyes trained on the immense wealth of Sudan and Darfur in particular -- oil, copper, iron, lead, etc.

A foothold in Darfur would establish Israel in the south Sahara and help it gain a foothold close to the Red Sea. And it's not just Darfur. Israel is encouraging Sudanese refugees from Sudan's south and Nubia to reach its borders via Egypt. Nearly 3,000 people have tried that route so far, according to Sudanese official figures. Israel wants Western Sudan to secede, for then the rebels may be persuaded to grant it a military base in their areas -- a development that would endanger Egypt, Libya, Sudan and the Red Sea. This scenario is not happening in Sudan alone, but all over Africa's many turbulent regions.

The US is currently engaged in an effort to run an oil pipeline from Iraq and the Gulf states through Darfur, Libya and Morocco, all the way to the Atlantic. Combine this with Israel's attempt to establish itself near the sources of the Nile and in south Sudan and you'll have a fair picture of what's going on. Israel is trying to encircle Egypt from the south.

We need to remain alert to Israeli and US manoeuvres in Sudan and Africa. We need to take a close look at what's happening, also, in other parts of Africa and think of the consequences for our national security and the security of the Arab world. Solidarity with our African brethren has always been a mainstay of our policy. But now we have to think beyond solidarity. We have to think of our own national security.