Mia Farrow makes Darfur swap offer
Actress and Unicef goodwill ambassador Mia Farrow has offered to swap places with a respected Darfur rebel figure so that he can receive much-needed medical treatment.
Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) Humanitarian Coordinator Suleiman Jamous has been virtually imprisoned for more than 13 months, confined to a UN hospital in Kordofan, neighboring Darfur.
He is a moderate leader who has been a key link between Darfur rebels and aid workers in the war-torn Sudanese region.
Jamous needs to have a stomach biopsy, an operation which cannot be performed at the site.
In a letter to Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Farrow wrote: "Before his seizure, Mr Jamous played a crucial role in bringing the SLA to the negotiating table and in seeking reconciliation between its divided rival factions."
"I am therefore offering to take Mr Jamous' place, to exchange my freedom for his in the knowledge of his importance to the civilians of Darfur and in the conviction that he will apply his energies toward creating the just and lasting peace that the Sudanese people deserve and hope for."
Activists say Jamous could help restart negotiations between rebel groups and the government after last year's peace deal largely failed to end the violence.
