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Cyprus Holds Arms Ship Thought to be Bound for Sudan

   VOA News 22 June 2010
   An Antigua and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship Santiago laden with the arms
   and  explosives  lies  anchored  off  the  port  in  southern  city of
   Limassol, Cyprus, 22 June 2010

Photo: AP

   An Antigua and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship Santiago laden with the arms
   and  explosives  lies  anchored  off  the  port  in  southern  city of
   Limassol, Cyprus, 22 June 2010

   Authorities  in  Cyprus have intercepted a ship on grounds it might be
   carrying  weapons  bound  for Sudan's Darfur region, in violation of a
   U.N. embargo.
   Cypriot  officials said Tuesday that according to the ship's manifest,
   it   is  carrying  explosives  destined  for  Sudan.  Authorities  are
   investigating whether the cargo would breach the U.N. embargo.
   The  Antigua-and-Barbuda-flagged vessel has been anchored off the port
   of  Limassol  since  June  11,  when it was inspected after asking for
   refueling.
   The U.N. Security Council imposed an arms embargo on Darfur in 2004, a
   year  after rebels there took up arms against the Sudanese government.
   In  March,  the  U.S.  ambassador  to  the United Nations, Susan Rice,
   accused Sudan's government of ignoring the ban.
   The  U.N. says up to 300,000 people have been killed in seven years of
   fighting and related violence in Darfur.
   The  International  Criminal Court has indicted five people, including
   Sudanese  President  Omar  al-Bashir,  for  alleged  war crimes in the
   region.
   Sudan refuses to recognize the court. The Sudanese government puts the
   death toll from Darfur at 10,000.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

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