UNITED NATIONS, May 16 (UPI) -- The United Nations said it wants parties that have not yet signed the Darfur Peace Agreement to do so immediately and to not interfere in its implementation.
The 15-member U.N. Security Council Tuesday also called for a joint assessment team with the African Union to visit Sudan's embattled western region to determine the needs for transforming the slim AU mission into a robust U.N. operation.
The panel unanimously approved a resolution calling on U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan to deploy the assessment team within one week and to report back to the council on recommendations within a week of the team's return.
The resolution called on all parties to the agreement signed May 5 in Abuja, Nigeria, by the Sudanese government and the largest rebel force in the region to "work with the African Union, the United Nations, regional and international organizations and (U.N.) member states to accelerate the transition to a United Nations operation."
It was adopted under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, which allows for enforcement measures. The resolution expressed the council's intention to consider a travel ban and assets freeze against any individual or group that violates or blocks implementation of the agreement.
The pact aims to end fighting in a region that has seen the deaths of more than 200,000 people and the displacement of 2 million more in just over three years.
