A group of 130 officers from the Indonesian Formed Police Unit (FPU) has arrived in Darfur to strengthen the efforts of the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping force working to quell the violence in the strife-torn Sudanese region. The Indonesian contingent will be based in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur and headquarters of the joint force, known as UNAMID, which has been lacking troops and police, as well as key assets, since it was deployed at the start of this year. FPUs are comprised of police officers who have received specialized training in high-risk operations. The Indonesian unit is only the second FPU, along with the Bangladeshi unit deployed earlier this year, in the region out of the 19 such contingents recommended for UNAMID. The new unit has arrived at a crucial time, UNAMID Deputy Police Commissioner for Operations, Adeyemi Ogunjemilusi, said, noting that its services are especially needed to support the work of the UNAMID Police, particularly in providing security to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the region. Security for Darfur's IDPs was among the issues raised during Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy's visit to the region last week. UNAMID plans to deploy at least another 4,500 troops by the end of this year. This would bring the total deployment level to about 65 per cent of the envisioned 26,000 troops and police.
