End nearing in Darfur.

Byline: The Register-Guard

The endgame is fast approaching in the genocide in Darfur. Indeed, it may already have begun.

Since 2003, government-backed Arab militias called the janjaweed have terrorized Darfur's African tribal populations, killing more than 200,000 and driving more than 2 million from their villages.

Surviving Darfuris have fled to refugee camps, where they have been kept alive by courageous foreign aid workers and an overextended peacekeeping force provided by the African Union. In recent weeks, the militias have ramped up their attacks, attacking the few remaining villages, harassing refugee camps, looting aid convoys, and kidnapping and killing AU peacekeepers.

The situation is becoming so dangerous that the remaining humanitarian organizations are on the verge of withdrawing. If that happens, hundreds of thousands, perhaps more than a million, will die of disease, starvation and a final onslaught from a Sudanese government that has long been waiting for just such an opportunity.

The Bush administration's efforts have largely focused on providing humanitarian aid and on diplomatic efforts to broker a settlement between the government and rebels in Darfur. But the negotiations have failed, leaving the region teetering on the brink of a genocide that could exceed the scale of what happened in Rwanda in 1994.

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, who has done an extraordinary job of reporting on Darfur, says the United States can prevent genocide by pushing for a dramatically expanded peacekeeping force, one that includes contributions from NATO. The current 7,000-member AU force is underequipped and has far too few troops for an area the size of Texas. Congress must immediately reverse its recent appalling decision to cut $50 million for the AU's struggling force.

Kristof also says the United States should impose a no-fly zone and destroy any Sudanese military aircraft that attempt to bomb civilians. Meanwhile, the House should pass the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act, which has already passed the Senate and would apply new sanctions against Sudan. Bush and U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan should jointly appoint a high-profile envoy to forge a peace accord between Sudan's government and Darfur's rebel groups.

The United States must move now. Oregonians should write their representatives in Congress and President Bush demanding action. The alternative is wholesale murder - murder of such magnitude that it has been given the unique and hideous name of genocide.