Ghanaian Officers Threatened in Darfur

The Force Commander(FC) of the African Union Mission in Sudan(AMIS), Maj. Gen. L. F. K. Aprezi has issued serious threats to kill the Ghanaian Military Officers deployed at the Force Headquarters. He has repeatedly over the past few months issued numerous threats purported to be directed at the Ghanaian Officers although he constantly stopped short of open declaration.

He believes that the Ghanaians have been planning to get him killed.

The FC therefore constantly and maliciously try to misrepresent or misinterprete actions of the Officers. On the contrary, the Ghanaians led by the Chief of Staff have worked professionally and diligently to the admiration of other Natonals.

Commendations received from various dignitories and personalities seems to be a grave source of worry for the FC,a Nigerian who is deeply engulfed in Nigeria-Ghana rivalry. The direct threat by the FC was issued to the Ghanaians on 14 Jun 07 during the Morning Operations Brief at the Force Headquarters.He openly declared that that two Ghanaian Officers entered his office to lure him out to be killed by a representative of one of the factions who was holding a pistol at the Headquarters.

The Ghanaian Officers had gone to brief the FC about the trouble the said man was causing outside since at that particular instance, the Chief of Staff who is also a Ghanaian had managed to convince, calmed the man and sent him to his office.

The FC declared that since the Chief of Staff is a Ghanaian and the officers who came to inform him were also Ghanaians,it was a design by the Ghanaian Officers to get him killed.He immediately repeated that should anything happen to him, the Ghanaians would also fall.

This is a very serious and dangerous threat coming from no other person than the Force Commander.The Government of Ghana and the Military High Command must take this issue very seriously despite the diplomatic ties that exist between the two countries because precious Ghanaian lives are at grave risk.

This report is being forwarded direct from El Fasher,the location of the Force Headquarters in Darfur, Sudan.

Thanks for the space provided.