The hybrid operation for Darfur: A critical review of the concept of the mechanism

This paper argues that the proposed hybrid AU-UN operation is a political construct that makes its practical application in Darfur extremely difficult

The paper presents a critical review of the concept of the mechanism of hybrid operations, as one of the emergent post-Cold War peacekeeping trends. While the experiential and diagnostic features of hybrid operations have previously appeared in some theatres, the dynamics of its use by the AU and the international community in the conflict in Darfur have raised considerable difficulties. The argument in this paper is that the proposed hybrid AU-UN operation in Darfur is a political construct that makes its practical application in Darfur extremely difficult. It does not prescribe solutions to the critical issues. However, it concludes that the right lessons should be learned from the experiences with the Darfur hybrid operation, for future operations.

About the author

Festus B Aboagye is the head of the Training for Peace Programme at the Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria, South Africa, and currently serves as the secretary of the African Peace Support Trainers Association (APSTA). He was an official of the OAU and AU from 2000 to 2004 and has previous professional military service experience with the Ghana Armed Forces (1973-2003) during which he attained the rank of colonel. He has written two books on the Ghana Army and ECOMOG and is the co-editor of A tortuous road to peace: The dynamics of regional, UN and international humanitarian interventions in Liberia, which was published by the ISS in 2005.