Chad/Sudan: Cross-border conflict escalates

Chadian troops have successfully crossed into Darfur, western Sudan, to rescue cattle stolen by Sudanese militias known as Janjawid, according to UN sources. In the last couple of days, Chadian soldiers had crossed into Gogei, Western Darfur, to collect the cattle, following an agreement signed last week between presidents Idriss Deby of Chad and Umar al-Bashir of Sudan, sources told IRIN. The agreement allowed Chadian soldiers to cross into Sudanese territory to chase away "rebels", but was being used to chase away Janjawid militias, IRIN was told. On both sides of the largely unguarded 1,350-km border between the two countries, the military presence has reportedly increased in recent days.