No end in sight for Darfur

The Darfur genocide will not end.

That's because the government of Sudan will never allow United Nations forces to send an armed force strong enough to stop the carnage. Even if the regime did finally give in to international pressure, Al Queda and its allies have already promised to turn such a mission into another Iraq.

I spoke to Darfurian refugees at a rally in Vancouver on the weekend. They said they wanted aid - economic, military, whatever the international community could provide.

Many people at the rally were even calling for Canada to send troops to lead a mission - hopefully not the exact same people who are calling for a Canadian withdrawal from Afghanistan - perhaps believing that a Sudan mission would more resemble our past operation in Cyprus than our current efforts in Kandahar province.

We are tied down in Afghanistan, and will be until 2009. International troops in that country, including Canadians, are the only thing preventing a civil war killing potentially millions. Sudan can't wait until 2009.

Unfortunately, they may have to.