Khartoum Agrees to Abide By 'unfair' Resolution

Sudan promised to protect civilians in Darfur yesterday, responding to Saturday's UN security council resolution threatening the regime with oil sanctions and ordering an inquiry into whether the atrocities in the region constitute genocide.

The government in Khartoum appeared to bow to the pressure to rein in its militias, but in a statement issued by its Washington embassy it called the resolution "unfair and unjust".

Driven by the United States, the resolution called for more African Union troops in Darfur to monitor Khartoum's compliance, and said the council would meet again to consider oil sanctions or other punitive measures if Khartoum did not swiftly restrain the government forces and the Janjaweed militia, which are accused of killing 50,000 people and expelling 1.2 million from their homes.

The council expressed "grave concern" that Sudan had not fully complied with its earlier resolution, and deplored the continued violence, including helicopter attacks in August.

The resolution was passed by 11 votes to zero, with China, Russia, Pakistan and Algeria, abstaining.

The wording was diluted to avert a veto by China, which said it would veto any resolution which tried to impose sanctions.

The UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, was authorised to appoint an international commission investigate reports of human rights violations and determine "whether or not acts of genocide have occurred" since Khartoum cracked down on a rebellion in Darfur province in 2003.

After months of debate, the Bush administration used the word genocide last week, dramatically raising the stakes for Sudan's rulers, because genocide is a crime punishable under UN conventions.

Sudan's UN ambassador, Elfatih Erwa, said his government would implement the resolution, but complained that it was unfair and linked to the US presidential election.

But the speaker of the Sudanese parliament, Ibrahim Ahmed al-Taher, was defiant, telling a government-affiliated news agency that they would not be bullied. "If Iraq opened for the west one gate of hell, we will open seven such gates."

There is little prospect of a western military intervention, since the US and the EU hope to work through peacekeepers from the African Union.