Wednesday, May 24 2006 11:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

United Nations: Sudanese President Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir discussed with Secretary General Kofi Annan the issue of sending a UN assessment team to strife torn Darfur region as the world body, backed by tough Security Council resolutions, began building up pressure on Khartoum.

Two top United Nations envoys arrived in Sudan to impress upon government the need to grant early permission to the team which would assess the conditions for a possible UN peacekeeping mission, stressing that the Council deadline for sending it within a weak is already over.

These political developments came as the world body released a new report slamming the human rights record of the Sudanese government.

Khartoum, it said, is failing to uphold the several of the human rights commitments made last year, especially in the Darfur region. It is either unable or unwilling to hold perpetrators of international crimes accountable, and the killing of civilians, raping of women and girls, and pillaging of entire villages continues.

The Council had unanimously adopted a resolution on May 16 under Chapter VII of the Charter, which allows for enforcement measures, calling for such an assessment team to be deployed within a week.

So far, Sudan has not given a green light for deployment and it is yet unclear if the Council would force the issue if Khartoum continues dilly dallying.