CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Educate, Advocate and Mobilize.

The Crisis in Darfur has now spread significantly into Chad. A military Coup launched against the Chadian Presidency of Idriss Deby at the beginning of February 2008 has seen the capital N'Djamena under heavy fire, NGO and Aid Community staff evacuated and the Refugee Camps inside the Chadian border - home to more than 150,000 Darfuris and internally displaced Chadians - left more vulnerable to open attack than ever before.

The following website links will connect you to the most active, engaged and up-to-date information, campaigns and activist groups working together to bring this insanity to an end.

STOP GENOCIDE NOW 2008

Grass-roots Interactive Global Activism - Projects include "i-ACT" - filmed and reported directly from the Refugee Camps of Eastern Chad by GABRIEL STAURING and KATIE-JAY SCOTT and the team (including NINY KHOR ) - and "Camp Darfur" - an interactive awareness and education event that brings attention to the ongoing genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and gives individuals the opportunity to discover their own power to make a difference. A traveling refugee camp coming to your community.

Genocide Intervention Network (GI-Net)

Mark Hanis and the team at Genocide Intervention Network envision a world in which the global community is willing and able to protect civilians from genocide and mass atrocities. The mission is to empower individuals and communities with the tools to prevent and stop genocide. Initiatives and GI-Net supported projects include:

STAND: A Student Anti-Genocide Coalition

Sudan Targeted Divestment: Are your investments funding genocide?

Darfur Scorecard: What is your Representative doing about genocide?

10 Things: Ten things you can do to stop genocide.

ENOUGH! Project

The project to abolish genocide and mass atrocities is an initiative of the Center for American Progress and the International Crisis Group (launched January 30, 2007). Site includes monthly reports, papers and op-eds.

Save Darfur Coalition

An alliance of over 100 faith-based, humanitarian and human rights organizations. Updates, campaigns, blog and newsletters on site.

Ask the Candidates The next US President MUST stop the genocide in Darfur.
1-800-GENOCIDE (1-800-436-6243): Call the anti-genocide hotline and get the most up-to-date talking points before getting connected (for free) to your legislator at the state and federal level.
ICG: International Crisis Group. Detailed crisis reports, briefings, international op-ed pieces.
HRW: Human Rights Watch. A great site for current alerts & information.
Amnesty International
USHMM Speaker's Directory

Last comment added: Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:31:48 PDT

Comment 1 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

i-ACT 2008 Stop Genocide Now

Gabriel and the crew are back in Chad and on their way to the Camps on the Darfur/Chad border.

Please support Gabe and Stop Genocide Now.org by going to the website, following this trip, telling 5 friends about i-ACT 2008 and contacting your elected officials and the candidates for the upcoming US Presidential Campaign.

Comment 2 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

I'll tidy up (and add to) the links in the first part/introduction tomorrow or when I have a bit more time.

Cheers, Gayle

Comment 3 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Gabriel and Katie-J have been in Chad for a few days - utterly bogged down in red-tape in N'Djameena and then more waiting and more paperwork in Abeche before finally hitting the first IDP Camp today.

Details of the events and trip so far can be found on the website which will be up-dated with new video and journal entries daily for 10 days.

For those of you new to "Stop Genocide Now" and the i-ACT trips, details and video of each can be found on the website by year. (2005, 2006, 2007 and the current i-ACT 4)

www.StopGenocideNow.Org/

Comment 4 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 1: January 19th 2008 - Back to the Camps!

Comment 5 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Maaaaaaaaaaaaark or Jimmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm,

Will you have a go at fixing the (above) disasterous video embedding effort for me, Pleeeeeeease!! (It's bedtime here - and I can't work it out. I can do youtube ones but.....)

Thank you, thank you in advance, G. :)

Comment 6 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thanks for posting this Gayle!

Comment 7 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Hey Gayle, I looked at Google Video and did not see the embed code there. I'm getting the video files from Carolyn and Yuen-Lin some time soon to upload videos to YouTube...that we can embed here rather easily.

Comment 8 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Comment 9 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

With video posted in google video the author has to turn on the embed code. Its less obvious than youtube but you can get in longer videos.

Comment 10 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thnx John. One of the many reasons why the UI at YouTube was so much better than what Google had built.

Comment 11 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 2: Jan 20th 2008 - visiting the refugee camp's school.

Comment 12 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Mark - thanks lots for organising Day 1's code with Yuen-Lin :)

John - ta! That makes sense ... even to a (willing but not always successful) learner like moi!!!

Comment 13 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

So great to catch up on these videos. Thanks for posting them to YouTube and sharing links on facebook, etc. I am playing a bit of catch up here.....

Comment 14 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Gayle, you bet. Susan, hard to believe it's the 4th i-ACT and this is still going on, huh?

A "bonus" video...

Comment 15 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Ha!!! Mark, I just logged in to post the video you have just posted - excellent :)

And on the topic of in sync, we were talking here about years passed this morning. I didn't know Gabe for the first i-ACT - only 2, 3 and this one. (oooh - before I forget, HI Susan and Esther!)

UN resolutions in place and the Beijing Olympics coming up quickly (and the ongoing attendant ability to pressure them into political decency before the event) and still no real movement on the ground.

Hmmmm ....

Comment 16 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Conversation had on "Davos" thread - pasted to here as well

By Meron Moroz (62), Sun, 20 Jan 2008 22:49:13 PST

Okay! I just watched the ned.com Macy Gray & Stop Genocide Now Message for Darfur. & Stop Genocide Now???! How did I miss this? How did this all come about? Where the HELL have I been???

By Mark Grimes (124), Sun, 20 Jan 2008 22:54:10 PST

Gabriel met Macy's agent/contact at a Darfur event...and she want to help out. She was going to be on this trip...but the concert was the outcome instead. Gabe's the man.

By Meron Moroz (62), Sun, 20 Jan 2008 22:56:10 PST Edited: Sun, 20 Jan 2008 23:01:21 PST

Go GABE Go!!! : )

<Edit> to add Gabriel is the sweetest, most amazing man I know. He's my hero!!!

Comment 17 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 3 i-ACT 2008: Still hoping for action!

Great video - and who is the biggest softie of them all?

Comment 18 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 4 i-ACT 2008: Camp Mile

Comment 19 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 5 i-ACT 2008: Guereda to Abeche to Goz Beida

Comment 20 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thought this might help get some idea of where they are.

Unfortunately I couldn't find a neat & tidy little map that had N'Djamena, Guereda, Abeche and Goz Beida all listed.

So to give you rough idea, Guereda is about 300 miles North East of Abeche. They left there this morning, travelled to the base/hub in Abeche and then jumped another plane and headed a similar distance - this time South East - to Goz Beida.

Does the World Food Program flight "service" offer Frequent Flyer miles?? Hmmmmm. :)

Comment 21 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Amnesty International - www.eyesondarfur.org/

A site well worth looking at and joining - www.eyesondarfur.org/ and as promoted on the stop genocide now website by the i-ACT 2008 team.

Comment 22 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 6 i-ACT 2008: Finding Tracy McGrady's friend, Oumar

This is hot off the presses - in fact it's on Ned before the SGN website :)

It's a great video ..... watch out for Mr. Staurings "Bend it like Beckham" right foot flick to KTJ at the end .... VERY impressive!

Comment 23 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Hi everyone! My first post, I think.

Nick Kristof has a new Darfur Op-Ed out today: "China's Genocide Olympics" http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/2 4/opinion/24kristof.html

A magnificent piece -- in the sense that it will really help a wide audience understand the China-Sudan connection.

Comment 24 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Hi Nikki - it's really fabulous to have you here.

Thank you so much for posting the link - personally it's been a mega busy day and I may well have missed this had you not posted.

And agreed - it is a magnificent piece .... but does Nick ever write anything less? :)

Comment 25 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Yes Nikki - thanks and welcome. A great piece!

[Edited by Jon A - typo]

Comment 26 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 7 i-ACT 2008: Education, Unity & Power

WOW!! :)

Comment 27 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 8 i-ACT 2008: Travelling to Farchana Camp

This is a really nice video to watch - Gabe and Katie-J look well and lifted by the arrival of Josh and Jeremiah .... and the impending visit with LEILA!!!! (whom they met in i-ACT 2007 and probably the cutest kid in Chad - and she is utterly besotted with Gabe.... and the feeling is mutual!!! I can't wait for that reunion :)

Comment 28 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

The daily blogs/journals from Katie-J and our Gabriel are deeply intimate, unvarnished accounts of their thoughts and feelings about this experience.

Click on the journal link within the Stop Genocide Now Website to read their updates.

Comment 29 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Looking back - before reuniting with Mansur

As I sit here waiting for the embed code for today's i-ACT video, I started to get quite excited.

Today, Gabriel and Katie-J are in Farchana - the place Gabe first met Mansur last year - and as I write, they are probably putting the finishing touches on the video that reunites us all with Mansur. (and delivers some VERY exciting news)

Mansur is the most beautiful boy - an artist - and one of the results of i-ACT 2007 was a connection made between him and Gabe's nephew Michael.

Michael is about 16 years old, lives in the States, is very talented and creative and he designs and makes t-shirts. He was so impressed with Mansur's art-work that he contacted Gabriel and Connie (Gabe's sister, Michael's aunt and Gabe's travelling & advocacy partner in the 2007 trip to Chad) and asked them to return to Mansur and ask if he would give them some drawings so they could be made into t-shirts.

The end result has been that the Stop Genocide Now Apparell (left hand column) carries the art-work of Mansur on the front. (how cool is THAT!)

Today - Gabriel (this time with Katie-J as his advocacy & travelling partner) will get to show Mansur the t-shirts with his designs on the front. WOW!!!

For those who didn't experience seeing the artwork on the wall of the tent - and the original connection with Mansur - here is the video from i-ACT 2007. (Mansur and Gabe appear toward the end)

Comment 30 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Better late than never! http://reezle.com/

Comment 31 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 9 i-ACT 2008: Meeting old friends in Camp Farchana

Maybe it's because it's almost 1am here and I've only had about 12 hours sleep over the past 3 days ... or maybe I've just had a complete gut-full of this bloody madness, but this video has really gotten to me.

I can't stop sobbing - and they are angry tears.

Comment 32 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Great job at Farchana Camp Gabriel and KTJ! Loved all the beautiful faces, including yours! :)

Pax, Megan

Comment 33 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Gorgeous, Megan!!! :)

Comment 34 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 10 i-ACT 2008: Meeting Mansur's family

Even though Mansur had (temporarily) gone back to Sudan when Gabe and Katie-J returned to Farchana, Gabe had the chance to present Mansur's Mum (oh OK, Mom for those in USA!!!) with the t-shirts bearing her son's art work.

Comment 35 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

The kids singing at the end for peace is great!

Comment 36 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Isn't it though!!! :)

Comment 37 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Regarding the info at the start of this thread

Hey!

The start of this thread was driving me barking mad - WAY too messy and long - so I've just made a start on re-doing the whole thing using icons that link directly to the organisation's websites.

Some of the orgs don't have j-peg type logos that are easy to lift so I've emailed them to have the logos sent. (included in that list are Amnesty & Aegis Trust)

Esther - I couldn't get an icon off the Save Darfur website (wouldn't save in j-peg). Do you have one or can you get your hands on one for me? (Thanks in advance as always!)

I've got a file here for logos so would you all either send me a PM with info or upload logos and let me know and I'll add them in throughout the course of the coming weeks.

Thank you so much,

G, :)

Comment 38 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 11 i-ACT 2008: Last Day in Camp Farchana

The drawings from the little ones are heart-breaking - and then the guys got footage of Fatna's new house being built. "Mixed blessings" indeed today.

Comment 39 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

>>The start of this thread was driving me barking mad - WAY too messy and long - so I've just made a start on re-doing the whole thing using icons that link directly to the organisation's websites.<<

Just a thought, but what was there before was pretty information rich combined with the direct links to the site. The logos (at a few K each) may make this thread hard or impossible to load for Ned members in developing countries or accessing Ned on mobile devices.

Gayle, thnx for staying so on top of things and keeping the new fresh videos in the thread.

Comment 40 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

No probs on the new video thing, Marky-Boy - "loose change" compared with what Gabe and the gang are doing again. (And thank YOU for "staying on top of things" at youtube, fb etc. :)

Regarding the "Just a thought" bit from above, I've just emailed Christina with links to this thread and the "less pretty" one (had to get that in!!) from sept 2007 thread and asked her if she would compare degree of difficulty in loading whenever she gets a spare minute or two. (sorry darlin' - you need another "job" like you need gastro!)

If it's too clunky I'll swap it back to the original format straight away.

Cheers, G. :)

Comment 41 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Day 12 i-ACT 2008: The trip is over but i-ACT continues.

This was very hard to wake up to this morning. Gabe and KTJ were denied entry into Camp Gaga because of just one allegedly missing stamp on their paperwork.

So - Gabriel wasn't able to be reunited with little Leila - and give her the toys and drawings he carried with him from LA from his 4 year old son, Gabo.

I can't imagine how they are feeling.

Comment 42 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Looking back to i-ACT 2007... meeting LEILA

I've mentioned Leila a couple of times already so for those who have only recently found i-ACT and stopgenocidenow.org, here's the video of Leila and the kids in Camp Gaga from last year.

Little Leila became the poster-girl of the 2007 trip for many, many people..... and stole Gabe's heart :)

Comment 43 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Here is a copy of Gabriel's journal entry covering the last couple of days. The i-ACT team are now just back in N'Djamena - with heavy hearts and a powerfully re-newed committment to action.

58 Days of i-ACT completed, and yet the work is just beginning.

Gabriel’s Journal—day 12 (and 11 and 10)

I’m again writing from up in the air, flying over the Chadian desert on our way back to N’Djamena. Day 12 is the last day of our fourth i-ACT, but it is not the end of our “interactive-activism.” We have to see it with the energy of beginners. These last few days, KTJ and I have been talking a lot about how to do more and be more effective at what we do, about how we can share the urgency that we feel out in the camps. The end of our current “mission,” as our days out here are called by all workers, is the beginning or continuing of our mission to help the displaced people of Darfur return to a stronger, peaceful, and full life in their homeland.

On the personal side, I do not feel as if I completed my mission for this trip. Overall, the journey has been amazing and very productive. We have connected and reconnected with so many wonderful people that are now a part of a larger community that reaches across continents. Our small i-ACT team, both on the ground and back home, has accomplished so much. It is small in scale but huge, rich, and deep in so many human values. We are now all determined to make a true difference in changing the way the world responds to genocide. Driving yesterday from Gaga to Abeche, though, I felt an empty feeling in me.

This might seem childish, and I know this trip is not about me, but I really wanted to see Leila and her family. Leila’s face has been in my mind since the end of my last trip out here. She has helped me to stay focused when going out to dozens of communities around the US to talk about Darfur. They did not allow us to go in to Gaga this time. The gendarmes told us angrily that we needed yet another stamp and signature from an official in a tiny little village a few kilometers away. We did not find this official, since he was out looking for some stolen cows. There was just no way to get in, so we drove away.

When we got closer to Abeche, we saw heavy military presence guarding the way in to town. They were definitely getting ready for serious activity. At UNHCR, they told us that the rebels were just a few kilometers away, and it was suspected that they were preparing to attack. All missions to the camps were being cancelled, so we were lucky to be back in Abeche and with a flight the next day. If we had stayed in Gaga, we could have been stuck in the middle of trouble. I’m not a big believer in that random “things happen for a reason,” but sometimes being lucky is not bad.

We did get very lucky in getting most of our mission completed, with Gaga being the only camp we could not get in to. That means that I did not get to see little Leila. My Gabo had spent weeks drawing and coloring pictures to send as a gift to Leila and her friends. He also gave me his favorite little car and a dinosaur to give to her. I’m going to hold on to those, so I can bring them with me on the next i-ACT, this coming spring.

I have Leila’s picture on my phone, and that will stay there until I see her again. I would love it if I could not only be bringing gifts for Leila in the spring but also good news. Wouldn’t it be nice if Leila’s friends from around the world had stood up together allowed her to return home?

I will get to Gaga next time, and I’m going to work a little harder in between on finding more friends for Leila.

Paz, g

Comment 44 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

More incredible and unreal journal writing at: http://www.stopgenocidenow.org/

Comment 45 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thanks for posting the iAct videos and news here. I do go to the site, but it is great having it collected here as well.

Will try to touch base more soon... is there a Kenya thread here as well?

Comment 46 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

>>is there a Kenya thread here as well?<<

You bet, here is the Kenyan Election thread

Comment 47 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

gabriel, so sorry to read that you were not able to connect with little leila. that feeling can gnaw. i hope you will have a way to reach out to her again. i sometimes think children's eyes are like stars: the same light can beam at you from anywhere. be well. welcome home.

Comment 48 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

The Stop Genocide Now i-ACT field team is currently stuck in Chad due to fighting this week requiring UNHCR and other NGOs to withdraw staff from several areas including camps i-ACT had just visited in the past two weeks (http://http://allafrica.com/stor ies/200801310911.html).

Gabriel and Katie-Jay evacuated to N’Djamena right before violence and instability broke out, but rebels have surrounded the city. SGN will continue to post journals and video/photos at their website while awaiting transport home. You can send them moral support by posting at their site: http://www.stopgenocidenow.org/.

In the meantime they have asked, "Lend us your voice by signing our petition: http://stopgenocidenow.org/petit ion! Despite agreeing to a United Nations/African Union joint peacekeeping mission, Sudan has continued to put obstacles on the deployment of the force. We have started a petition urging President Bush to use the last year of his presidency to push for a stronger UNAMID protection force in Darfur."

Please help! So far 258 signatures have been gathered, but we can certainly do better. We all need to sign this petition and then get as many others as possible to sign, also!

Thanks,

Lisa Goldner

Comment 49 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Done. Thanks for pointing that out!

I hope all goes well for Gabriel and Katie-Jay.

Comment 50 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Lisa - I just went to the link to read the comments going with petition signing from others and - GASP - I mustn't have clicked the confirmation link or something when I signed so mine wasn't there.

It is now - with message!!! - so thank you!!!, both broadly and personally.

Comment 51 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Got an email from Gabe this morning and - given the difficulties - they are doing OK.

Jon - so good to see you here and thanks to the Nedsters who jumped on and signed the petition as soon as Lisa posted.

(have I mentioned lately that I love Ned?)

Comment 52 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Tonight, our prayers are certainly with Gabe, KTJ, J & J, and, of course, all the other NGOs and refugees who are surrounded by the escalating tensions in Chad.

Found the following entries posted at Bobbie-Francis McDonald's Sudan Advocacy Action Forum (SAAF) site and thought they were good ones to remind us the fragility of one nation bears greatly on the well-being of its neighbors. She reminds us, "Historically, in past instances of neighboring country unrest, the GoS has contributed to the turmoil instead of fostering stability. It is with great concern that we monitor potential conflicts in Chad, Dem Rep of Congo, Somalia and Kenya."

SAAF Update February 1, 2008

Sudan Cannot Speak In Our Name. To the relief of many and credit to its membership, Tanzania, with president Jakaya Kikwete, was elected African Union chair at the ongoing summit in Addis Ababa Thursday, taking over from Ghana. (Various wire sources)

Comment: "The Government of Sudan is one of the most unscrupulous governments in the world, and this is no mean 'achievement' given the many claimants to this dubious honour. It is so cynical that the words 'shame' and 'sensitivity' do not exist in its political dictionary...It cannot be right that a country and a government that kills its own people is allowed to be spokesperson for Africa. Khartoum should be disallowed from assuming the chair of the Union..." (Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem)

Kenya Impacts Sudan

"Think of Kenya (and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa) as a wall, made up of stones of different sizes representing the different tribes. Imagine this wall as being weakly cemented together and acting as a dam holding back a huge body of water. Think of the body of water as poverty, joblessness, increasing populations, hunger and so on. There is an obvious strain on the wall as the water dams up. Democracy, religion, rule of law, constitutions and some of the other institutions that you may be familiar with can be considered merely as wallpaper that one can bring and paste over this wall. It would certainly look pretty, but trouble would be brewing as the mass of water increased." (Raphael Marambii Jan 9)

SAAF Comment: The majority of border states of Sudan—Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Central African Republic--are in some level of turmoil and instability. Kenya is one where there was felt to be some security. Now that Kenya, once a gateway for humanitarian aid and trade with the interior of the continent, is in disarray, those living adjacent to Kenya are threatened with renewed instability.

~Lisa

Comment 53 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Latest email Gabriel sent me this morning...I am sure he won't mind me sharing it.

"We have not made it out of Chad. We missed some trouble in the East, but the rebels made it all the way to the capital and there is fighting outside; they are promising to come in and try to take the President down if they don't get a share of the power. Our flight was scheduled for tonight, but the airport has been closed, so we have to stay put in our hotel until further instructions. The EU forces that have been coming in to protect the aid work in the east have been arriving in the capital and some have taken post here at Le Meridien, since in has a clear view of the Presidential Palace from the roof. There is an eery calm in the city, with the streets being completely deserted. We're OK here, comfortable and feel safe; now it's just the uncertainty of not knowing when we can get out."

Comment 54 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

thank you pam. i think of that "eerie calm" - in Somalia, Congo, Kenya as well... it is unsettling, the on-goingness and spread of these eerie moments. and it is good to know gabriel and team feel safe amidst these risks... keep safe.

Comment 55 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

In haste (sorry I have to go out for a bit)

Both from a skype call to yet another friend working in N'Djamena about 3 hours ago (and on her way to Cameroon first available flight) through to the BBC just updating with "no change" listed, it looks like everyone in N'Djamena got through the night safely.

It's almost 5:30am there now.

<edit - for clarity>

Comment 56 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Additional thread created to (hopefully) draw extra attention to the PETITION and help keep it in the What's New section for a little while so more members see it.

Here's the link!

Comment 57 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Not the best news to report it seems.

Right now it is 12 midday on Saturday in N'Djamena (which is Saturday 11am GMT and 2:30am PST).

Yesterday the fighting was approx. 50 km to the north-east of N'Djamena's city limits (at Massaguet) but as of two hours ago there was broad media and UN confirmation that the fighting had crossed within 20kms of the city.

Al Jazeera posted 1 hour ago that there was gunfire not far from the Presidential Palace but they did not quantify "not far".

I've just scoured websites and even the French sites make no mention of any evacuation flights having left yet this morning. (Chad time)

Of course that doesn't mean anything except it's not reported.

Gabe's family have had the team listed with the US Consulate in Chad and hopefully they are on their way out or close to it.

If not, there are many, many reports mentioning a considerable number of EU troops present within the Meridian Hotel - where they all are hold up.

<edit for correct PST & GMT time>

Comment 58 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

FROM AL JAZEERA - updated 30 minutes ago.

Fighting reaches Chadian capital

Fighting between government forces and an armed opposition alliance has reached Chad's capital, Ndjamena, with preparations under way to evacuate foreigners.

Gunfire and shelling near the presidential palace was reported in the city on Saturday morning and French citizens have been assembled in hotels before a possible evacuation.

"The fighting has reached Ndjamena," Haru Mutasa, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Ndjamena, reported.

"The city is on high alert - there is smoke at the corners. We can hear very loud shelling.

"People expected the fighting to stay 30km away and it came as a surprise that it came so quickly."

Battle in capital

Government forces battled opposition fighters near the presidential palace and seemed to be moving through the city freely. The whereabouts of Idriss Deby, the president the rebels seek to overthrow, was not known.

The national television service has been suspended.

Mutasa said that French troops were stationed outside hotels housing French nationals, as well as the French embassy. At least 1,500 French people live in Chad.

"The [Chadian] civilians are looking out for themselves. Some Chadian forces are in town, but most of them have been sent out where the fighting has happened," she said.

"[Chadian] civilians are assuming that because the French have not been involved in the fighting, as yet, that they have let this happen when they could have stopped it."

Chadian government troops are guarding the presidential palace, the defence ministry and the official radio station building.

Fierce fighting

A day earlier, Chad's military said it had defeated the opposition fighters in Massaguet, which lies about 50km northeast of the capital.

Amad Allam-Mi, Chad's foreign minister, said late on Friday that the opposition alliance had been prevented from reaching Ndjamena.

"The rebels were defeated after serious clashes, the capital is calm and under control," he said on the sidelines of an African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

A military source in Ndjamena said Deby had been at the frontline on Friday, but had returned to the capital.

Timan Erdimi, one of the leaders in the opposition alliance, had a different version of events, saying his fighters had defeated the military.

Erdimi joined forces with opposition alliance leaders Mahamat Nouri and Abdelwahid Aboud Makaye in mid-December after a peace pact with Deby failed.

Ban Ki-moon, UN secretary-general, expressed concern at the security situation.

A UN statement said Ban was "deeply concerned at the resumption of fighting in Chad ... and reiterates the United Nations' condemnation of the use of military means to seize power".

EU mission delay

Chad accuses Sudan of aiding the opposition alliance, which has bases in the Sudanese region of Darfur, just over Chad's eastern border.

On Monday, an opposition convoy of 300 trucks, each capable of carrying between 10 and 15 men, approached Ndjamena from Darfur in their biggest offensive since April 2006.

Jebren Issa, a spokesman for the opposition United Forces for Democracy and Development, said the opposition alliance did not want to endanger civilians.

"We don't want the civilians of the capital to be at risk. We can attack the capital at any time we want, but we don't want to get involved in a civil war," he told Al Jazeera.

"We want the regime in Ndjamena to surrender to our troops, otherwise we have to get in [to the capital]. But not at the moment.

"We know from our sources inside the capital that the government is too weak to resist our troops."

The United Nations evacuated all "non-essential" staff from Ndjamena to Cameroon amid the fighting.

Amid the increasing tensions, France has sent a combat unit of 126 extra troops into Chad, joining 1,100 already situated there.

A EU peacekeeping mission, which was due to start deploying in Chad and neighbouring Central African Republic, announced on Friday that it was temporarily suspending troop flights to Chad.

Eufor, which at full strength will consist of 3,700 peacekeepers, is tasked with protecting about half a million civilians displaced as a result of the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region.

Comment 59 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Gabe JUST posted to the website - excellent!!!

First post by Gabiel

The US Embassy has told me that they cannot come and get us, so we have to wait it out here. The sounds and feel of fighting is louder and closer. The walls and windows here shake, and we can feel the explosions.

OK, fighting is right at the gate of the hotel. We’re all in the dinning area. There are a handful of EU soldiers around, but we are still hoping that there is nothing in this hotel that the rebels want, which I’m sure is the case. They want to take the palace, and the palace is just down the street.

paz

Second post From Gabriel's Journal

We go through some quiet minutes, and it feels close to normal, but then, consistently, we get big bangs and non-stop gunfire that brings us back to the reality of N’Djamena. As I write this, a shell hit way too close to us, the kind of bang you feel on your skin.

I start to think, “How long can they keep it up?” Then I think of other war situations around the world, and I know they can keep it up for a long time. The city is taking some heavy hits, and I wonder how the citizens of N’Djamena are feeling and how many are paying for these power struggles.

There is now shooting right outside of the hotel, it feels like it’s coming from the gate, but I’m staying down and not looking out for now.

We still have French military personnel in and around the hotel.

It is clear that the rebels are not here to make a point but to take over power.

We’ll stay put, since there are no other options, and it still feels like this hotel is relatively safe, although a little close to the action.

Thanks for all the notes of support and caring.

Paz, Gabriel

Comment 60 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

In addition to Gabriel and his crew, Dr. Ashis Brahma is also stuck in the capital (unless he was able to get out in the last day or so.) I am terribly worried about them all. If the international community had done a better job for Darfur, could this have been averted?

http://www.ashis-africavision.bl ogspot.com/

(Gayle - not sure if you still need me to check in with the Save Darfur Coalition about their logo.)

Comment 61 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

And from Katie-Jay

That stray shelling was a little close for comfort. The hotel, and my heart, shook for a moment, the longest moment I have felt in a while. We hold up on the first floor of the Le Meridien waiting to hear word from the French military or the US Embassy who is closer to the Presidential Palace than we are.

Just five minutes ago, the eerie silence had over taken the hotel and we began to look a little more at ease. Pilots sit in one corner of the lobby while 25 or so other guests smoke in the lounge. The heavy curtains have been drawn in the case the glass breaks from shots.

The normally bustling river bank of Cameroon is empty. The streets have been desolate for two days. We sneak back and forth to the third floor to get a glimpse of anything, something, usually just black smoke coming from the Presidential Palace. Nobody really knows what is happening – not even those armed with humanitarian aid radios or guns.

Who will win this one? The rebels are fighting for power. This might be there last chance to grab anything before MINUCAT enters the country. As I said in my previous post, its ironic that these troops have delayed their landing in N’Djamena then travel to the Eastern region. They are the peacekeeping force that has the mandate to protect refugees, humanitarian aid workers and civilians if under attack. The very three groups currently caught in the crossfire.

I hear a heavy military vehicle for the first time in a few hours. Still no helicopters or airplanes. Information in French streams from the small room at the front of the hotel lobby which seems to be one of their headquarters. This information doesn’t seem to make to us, the =civilians.

Another one, a little to close for comfort. A military tank passes in front of the hotel followed by armed men on foot – Chadian? Rebels? For now I leave with these words and will make my way up to the third floor to set up the bgan, post this, and shoot an email out to our team back in the States. And of course to try to get a few shots of men, smoke, fire, anything that can give me more information.

KTJ

Comment 62 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Esther - another very good friend of mine sent me a brief message this a/m saying Ashis was fine.

And he was on skype about 12 hours ago.

I don't have any other details.

Comment 63 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thanks - that is good to know.

Comment 64 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

thank you for keeping news of gabriel, ashis and others circulating gayle. one's first experiences of violence at close quarter must always be visceral. i am glad they are keeping their heads low... thoughts are with them and kenya today...

Comment 65 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

CNN breaking news on cable is reporting the Embassy is evacuating its staff, saying all non-emergency Americans need to leave, heavy gunfire in the capital city, the Parliament building is being looted, and the Chad president may have left the country.

Comment 66 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

It's the lead story on the BBC site right now: Chad rebels fight inside capital

CNN coverage: Rebels move in on Chad capital

Comment 67 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

From the BBC article...

Eyewitnesses have reported heavy weapons fire coming closer to the city centre.

"From the third-floor we can see smoke coming from about a kilometre and a half away near the presidential palace," US aid worker Katie-Jay Scott told the BBC.

"The gunfire and artillery shakes the windows of the hotel."

Comment 68 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Chad Embassy - USA "news"

Comment 69 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Saying a prayer for the safety of our friends.

Comment 70 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

There is a photo of Katie-J in this BBC article. She rocks the shirt.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/afric a/7224015.stm

Just received a message from Gabriel's sister. They are worried. I don't know what I can do but I have friends with friends who maybe can help, so going to contact them immediately.

Comment 71 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

I tried the two satellite phone numbers I had for Gabriel from his last trip, but no answer. He quite possibly may have new numbers. I'm sure anything you could do would be great Pam. Hard to say if the embassy telling them to "sit tight" is good advice or not.

Comment 72 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

OK, just got thru on one of the good numbers, but Yeun-Lin said the phones don't work when they are indoors. Anyway, I left a message, told them that if there's anything we can do there's a lot of people here willing to do whatever we can.

Comment 73 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

it is probably good advice to sit tight: it is known where they are. the fewer moving targets logistics people have to work with, the better. let's hope they are out before the tension breaks and people start to get daring, a little bored, distracted... glad to know many with links to the region are putting in a hand. thanks pam!

Comment 74 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Latest email from Rachel:

"Yes, please any contacts you may have would be great. Things are not looking great over there. The hotel was attacked and they are hiding... They need the French Army to get to Le Meridien hotel and protect them... Before it gets dark and we are already running out of time."

I think it is already dark - the time change is 10 hrs from pst I think. Not sure.

Making calls and sending emails.

Comment 75 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Le Méridien Chari (Hotel)

396 Rue du Colonel Moll

BP118

N'Djamena, · Chad

Phone (235) 2525350 · Fax (235) 2522261

Comment 76 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Well, I've got no contacts there so I'm working thru the hotel channel to try to get one of their execs engaged.

Comment 77 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Thanks Mark, Here is the latest from JP:

"The French are in the lead and are well aware. I will call the State Department anyway and the Embassy in Chad, just to double track. But the hotel is one of the top points for the French army to deploy. They couldn't be in a better place if they are trapped there now."

Comment 78 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Latest from Gabriel, (forwarded from a family member)

""Thanks, it sounds good. American Embassy is telling us that they cannot do anything tonight, but there is is a flight tomorrow that can get us out; to call first thing in morning; for us, we have to decide if there's a chance to leave with others and then connect with them in the morning; there might be a chance to go to French military base, but we're holding tight to see what happens."

Comment 79 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Spoke with Scott at the Méridien reservations line, please dial 1-800-543-4300 - they had no numbers for any execs, and could not really help.

Then spoke with Media/Pr person for the hotel...

Mary Jane Orman

maryjane@starwoodhotels.com

Phone: 1-914-640-5287

Cell: 914-439-5629

She is going to contact a counterpart in Asia/Africa and see where things stand. She is aware that guests are in danger and going thru the channels.

Comment 80 on CRISIS in Sudan/Chad - 2008

Latest from Gabriel (getting feeds from his sister):

Thanks for the help. The US Embassy will not come and get us because of the danger in the roads, we're told. There's no way we, by ourselves, can make it to the Embassy; they have evacuated many from hotel, UN and others, but we do not seem to be high on the list; there's word that there might be a chance to evacuate to French military base, which we'll take if that option comes; and then we need to contact US Embassy to see how we get together with their evacuation plans. Thanks! Gabriel