"The sun is setting on the Sandrakkan Liberation Front"

[Mr. President]

With these words, Praetor Shinzon announced the renewal of Dakmoristan's bloody civil war. With these words, he confirmed that the army and the mercenaries have been unleashed once again on the Sandrakkan Liberation Front.

The safety zone set up under the terms of the 1998 ceasefire has been declared null and void. At 9:35 AM this morning, regulars from the Western Paladins, Border Rangers, and Stonehand divisions and mercenary auxiliaries under the Crimson Sunrise banner stormed the former safety zone. They reported initial successes in spite of resistance from SLF guerrillas. The village of Carcosa, the site of SLF headquarters, has been pounded by attack helicopters.

Military radio reports that the highways linking Sandrakkan and [Nation 68] have been closed indefinitely. (OOC: I don't know if that nation has been claimed. /OOC) Paratrooper units based in Pendrell Vale have been placed on standby.

Edit: I made it Nation 68 because Sandrakkan was in south-western Dakmoristan in both earlier and later posts.

[GeneralTacticus]

We have two questions for the Dakmoristani government:

1) Do you require asisstance under the Fonseca Treaty?

2) What are these rebels fighting for?

[Mr. President]

Thank you for the questions.

1) At the present time we do not require any assistance under the terms of the Fonseca Treaty. We will keep the Treaty members informed of all developments in the conflict.

2) The Sandrakkan Liberation Front first appeared in 1982. It was - and, evidence suggests, still is - a Marxist guerrilla group that opposed Dakmoristan's imperial system. Its stated aim at the time was the overthrow of the Praetor and the Senate and the establishment of a communist regime.

Over time it has been the nominal champion of many causes including farmers' rights, Calvinist independence, and social welfare. Even when efforts were made to resolve these issues through legitimate channels, the SLF turned to violence. Over the last 20 years it has been responsible for the kidnapping and murder of hundreds of soldiers, police, and civilians.

The last intensive fighting period of 1995-1998 ended in a stalemate. The government was forced to establish a safe zone for the rebels in the south-western area of the Sandrakkan province. The SLF is now involved in the cultivation and smuggling of illegal drugs into Dakmoristan and the illegal removal from the country of artifacts from archaeological sites such as the Adarkar Wastes and Zegon's Temple Hill. As such it is considered an extreme disruption to Dakmoristani society.

[GeneralTacticus]

Thank you for your answers. We would like to request that Centralian monitors be permitted to enter the combat zone as observers, to make sure that nobody violates human rights conventions.

[Mr. President]

This is acceptable to us. When your monitors arrive, Departments of Transportation and of Security will guarantee their timely transport to the combat zone.

[Mr. President]

Update

It has been a violent day in remote southern Sandrakkan. 12 Border Rangers were killed earlier this afternoon when an Osprey transport aircraft was brought down by a surface-to-air missile.

Sandrakkan Liberation Front positions have come under heavy aerial bombardment. As many as 200 rebels may have been killed. A major victory may have been scored, as the SLF's second-in-command, Edouard Morientes, has been missing since yesterday. The Air Force believes he may have been killed in the initial bombardment of Carcosa.

Elsewhere, 15 rebels were captured by security forces. Several of them were wounded. The prisoners were transported to an undisclosed location in eastern Dakmoristan for temporary detention.

[GeneralTacticus]

Newsflash!

The Communist Party of Centralis today issued a unanimous resolution condemning the recent Dakmoristani offensive and demanding that Centralis break relations with the government of Dakmoristan. They are planning a rally later today outside Parliament House in central Centralis City.

When asked for comment, Foreign Minister Andreas Von Weiser stated that "We have no intention whatsoever of giving in to anything the CPC demands of us. Dakmoristan is a valued ally and trade partner, who we fully support in taking action against the SLF, and they will remain our friends for the forseeable future."

More news as the situation develops.

[Sheep]

The ruling part of Sheepsta, the Green Party too has ollwed suit of its leftist allies in Centralis and has condemed the offensives taking place in Dakmoristan. President Stillman is still to publicly announce the outcome of this defiance, bu the rsults are expected to occur soon.

[Drogue]

While Akiria is wary of taking any side, it seems to us that the SLF did strike first. While they may feel oppressed, a drawn out guerilla war helps nobody. However, Akiria also hopes that the forces of Dakmoristan use reasonable force only, and are not tempted to use carpet bombing, or other such tactics, to 'flush out' the rebels.

As foreign minister of Akiria, I ask that my deputy, Minister Lil, be allowed into Dakmoristan, to try to mediate a non-violent resolution between the SLF and Dakmoristan Government. Lil is a firm centrist, who believes in workers rights, but within a firmly free market, and who abhores the use of force as a bargaining tool. He is a firm believer in using legitimate channels to voice opinions.

While the small Socialist Party of Akiria has sympthised with the rebels, they have questioned their methods. The Green Party has denounced the whole affair as a humanitarian travesty, and wants "free and natural order" restored. Akizeta, as per usual, has no opinion on international matters.

[Urban Ranger]

Public statement

The Department of International Relations made the following public statement at 16:00:

The Dominion of Noosland denounces the unprovoked attack against the Sandrakkan Liberation Front, citing it to be a brutal attempt of establishing imperial suppression over the people. this is a giant step backwards from the region's efforts in the past few years to resolve differences through peaceful talks and diplomatic means.

The Dominion of Noosland calls for an immediate cease of hostilities of Dakmoristanian forces.

[Mr. President]

Another update

Several government officials reacted to statements by foreign representatives. Nicole Pienaar, head of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, was characteristically blunt, denouncing foreign "interference" and warning Noosland against "supporting drug pushers". Praetor Shinzon reacted today, but in less strong terms, stating that "The Sandrakkan Liberation Front is an internal issue of Dakmoristan. Outside opinions are separate from our policies on this matter."

The assault on the SLF continues apace. The Stonehand division has suffered the highest casualty count so far; their total came to 24 today when three of their soldiers were killed by a booby trap near Grand Rapids on the border with the land of Dissidents. Auxiliaries from the Crimson Sunrise and Darksteel regiments seized 500 pounds of heroin.

Three men were arrested in Mysidia when police received a tip-off that they had purchased more than a hundred pounds of fertilizer containing ammonium nitrate. Police raided their rented apartment in Mysidia's western suburbs, finding bomb-making instructions, several automatic handguns, and SLF literature. The men have been charged under the Subversion Act.

Field commanders near Carcosa relayed a message to the SLF High Command from the Praetor himself, in which he lays out the government's demands for an end to hostilities. According to a military source, the demands were for the SLF to surrender its entire stockpile of weapons and drugs; in exchange, all surviving un-captured SLF fighters would be allowed to leave the country. The SLF requested three days to consider the demands, and the commanders agreed to cease fighting in the area around Carcosa for this period of time.

[Mr. President]

Victory!

Dakmoristan's 20-year on-again-off-again civil war came to an abrupt and anticlimactic end this week.

The writing was on the wall as early as last Saturday, with reports of mass surrenders coming through from Sandrakkan. Hundreds of Sandrakkan Liberation Front fighters turned in their weapons and large caches of drugs, as Dakmoristani forces advanced unresisted through large areas of the province.

Carcosa surrendered on Tuesday, quickly followed by the strategic SLF camps at Blue Ridge and Blackburn. What fighting was left quickly became a rout. The SLF's forces were smashed and swept southwards, into [Nation 68]. A tripartite agreement between Dakmoristan, the SLF, and [Nation 68] stipulates that the surviving SLF fighters may remain in [Nation 68] and will have immunity from prosecution as long as they do not set foot on Dakmoristani soil.

Of the fighters who surrendered, some have been charged or convicted in absentia of crimes. Those ones will be dealt with accordingly. Some of the others will be deported; more are suspects in violations under the Narcotics Act or the Terrorism Act, and will be held.

The government must now turn its attention to the rehabilitation of the SLF's former safety zone, an area around the size of Rhode Island. This area has almost no functioning industry save criminality. Dozens of tons of illegal narcotics have been recovered by security forces, as well as priceless artifacts from Dakmoristani archaeological sites that were due for sale on the black market. Many farms have grown little except narcotics for almost a decade.

The total casualty figures for the armed forces currently stand at 235, with an additional 12 listed as missing in action. The Stonehand division suffered the highest attrition rates, with 88 personnel killed and 4 missing. 200 soldiers have been nominated to receive medals or other forms of recognition from the military. Praetor Shinzon singled out the Crimson Sunrise auxiliaries for praise, saying that the battle would not have been won without their "decisive and efficient evisceration of the SLF".

[GeneralTacticus]

The government of Centralis is most pleased that this conflict has been brought to a conclusion, with loss of life apparently much less than it could have been, although we would like to see estimates of rebel and civilian dead before we comment further on that matter. We are prepared to offer any aid that may be required to rebuild Sandrakkan, and we believe that the MAFTI Central Bank may be willing to offer assistance as well.

[Mr. President]

Rebel and civilian casualty figures are not yet final. A military spokesman estimated SLF losses at between 300 and 400. There were several incidents in which hundreds of rebels were originally thought to have been killed, but later analysis suggested that the numbers were actually much lower.