UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Friday that he and US Secretary of State Colin Powell will visit Sudan next week to press the government to seek an end to the conflict in Darfur, west Sudan.

Annan told a news conference here that his visit will coincide with Powell's and that they will be together for at least one day in Khartoum, capital of Sudan, to "collectively" press the government over the Darfur conflict, which has left up to 10,000 people dead and nearly 1 million displaced, of whom over 150,000 fled to neighboring Chad.

The Darfur conflict, which flared up in February 2003, pitted the government and the Arab militias against two rebel groups formed by local black tribes. The Sudanese government called the militias outlaws and denied it supports them.

Annan said the people of Darfur are suffering from a humanitarian catastrophe caused by the conflict and he will travelto the region to assess the situation.

He urged the Sudanese government to do more to facilitate humanitarian operations in Darfur, where millions of people are inbad need of humanitarian relief.

"Entry of supplies and equipment, including trucks, must be facilitated," he said. "Threats against humanitarian workers must cease and delays in registering NGOs (non-governmental organizations) or granting them visas must also be removed."

Annan said his main purpose is to force Khartoum to disarm Arabmilitias which have been blamed for attacks on villages inhabited by black Africans in Darfur.

He said the actions of the militias, according to reports of UNofficials, were "bordering on ethnic cleansing."

"The most sacred responsibility of any government is to protectits people against the kind of crimes that have been committed in Darfur," Annan stressed. "The international community must hold itto that responsibility and that, above all, is the purpose of my visit."

"It must disarm the Janjaweed (militias), it must create an environment that will allow the displaced to go home, and it should engage with the rebel side very seriously in political settlement and in negotiations."

If the Sudanese government has no capacity to do so, Annan said,"The international community must be prepared to assist."

But if the Sudanese government refuses to act to protect inhabitants in Darfur, he said, the UN Security Council should take measures, including sanctions.

Annan warned that the atrocities that have happened in Darfur are universal crimes and the perpetrators, "whoever they are," will be held accountable.

Source:Xinhua