Chad - Darfur - EUFOR - peacekeeping
The challenges of Eufor's Chad mission
The European Union Force (Eufor) arrived in eastern Chad in March 2008 to protect civilians, refugees from Darfur and displaced people. But it is powerless to address some of the most pressing problems of the region.
The European Union Force (Eufor) arrived in eastern Chad in March 2008. Its role is to protect civilians, refugees and displaced people in a vast region that shares a border with the war-torn Sudanese province of Darfur. Its mission ends in March 2009 when it will be replaced by a UN force.
Eufor was initially set up with the idea of preventing the Darfur conflict from spreading across the border. But the reality today is that the main problem the population faces in eastern Chad is common banditry. And Eufor doesn’t have the mandate to arrest bandits; it is not a police force. Many Chadians and humanitarian workers say Eufor’s mandate is therefore not adapted to the problems on the ground.
As EU defense ministers meet in Deauville, France Oct. 1-2, 2008 to discuss Eufor and other joint European missions, FRANCE 24 presents four reports from Chad by correspondents Nicolas Germain and Virginie Herz.
Life in the Eufor camp in Abeche
The European force (Eufor) is based in eastern Chad, with more than a third of its 3,200 troops stationed in the "Camp des Etoiles" outside the town of Abeche. FRANCE 24 special correspondents Virginie Herz and Nicolas Germain report.
The limits to Eufor's mandate
Eufor troops were dispatched to eastern Chad to protect civilians. But in a zone about half the size of France, 3,000 men is not much - and they do not have the right to arrest the region's numerous bandits.
A volatile region bordering on Darfur
Eufor troops are deployed in eastern Chad, a very unstable region that shares a border with the war-stricken Sudanese province of Darfur. FRANCE 24 special correspondents in Chad, Nicolas Germain and Virginie Herz, report from the field.
Abeche residents react to Eufor presence
Eufor is in Chad to protect civilians. FRANCE 24 special correspondents Nicolas Germain and Virginie Herz gathered opinions on the efficiency of the force from ordinary Chadians in Abeche, where the main Eufor camp is based.
