On the other side, Sudan.
Lin Tao is a military attaché at the Chinese Embassy in Sudan, responsible for military diplomacy and training cooperation.
He has close contacts with the Sudanese army and has facilitated several small equipment trades in the past few years.
It can be said that during the period when Sudan was under sanctions, he was almost the only military personnel who frequently communicated with Sudanese officials.
This also greatly increased the Sudanese official's trust in him. When faced with emergencies, the information he received was always the most timely.
And this time is no exception.
Even before fighting resumed in Darfur, the Sudanese military had noticed unusually frequent activity there and immediately passed the intelligence back to the capital.
Subsequently, this information was passed to Lin Tao in the form of a "security report".
Since two weeks ago, the local embassy and Chinese-funded enterprises have entered a state of comprehensive contraction. Unnecessary outings are prohibited and projects close to dangerous conflict areas have been suspended.
The embassy responded quickly, but the problem was that with a serious lack of intelligence, no one could predict whether this was an ordinary riot to gain more benefits, or a real large-scale "rebellion" operation. .
This has also led to a lack of local preparedness in the face of conflict.
Therefore, when Lin Tao received the situation analysis and instructions from the country and confirmed that the conflict had a very high risk of expanding, he did not dare to waste even a second and took action immediately.
He first contacted the local military representative to obtain the latest intelligence on Darfur, but the other party's answer made him furious.
These conservative officials are unwilling to disclose whether the local armed forces have any signs of moving towards the capital, let alone the war situation and development trends in Darfur.
Obviously, they are afraid that the expected deterioration of the situation will affect the investment of various countries in Sudan. They are also afraid that with the smoke of war, the entire country will quickly collapse due to panic.
This is absolutely extremely irresponsible behavior.
If the Sudanese Revolutionary Front in Darfur really comes over, how are you going to deal with it?
You can escape on military planes and go to Saudi Arabia, Dubai, and Egypt, but what about the ordinary people who stay here?
Let them fend for themselves among gunfire and bullets?
Thinking of this, Lin Tao let out a long sigh.
It was indeed only when he came to Africa that he realized that not all governments in this world put the safety of people's lives as their top priority.
Capital and the aristocracy are in power, and all they care about is their own interests.
"How are the evacuation arrangements going?"
He asked Ma Yu, the secretary of the military attaché standing nearby.
"Currently, we have contacted 26 Chinese-funded companies, and 12 of them have stated that they will evacuate as soon as possible. We have begun communicating with major airlines to prioritize flights."
"In addition, other casual workers and business people have also been notified, but most of them are unwilling to evacuate."
"Their worth and life are all here, and they can't let them go."
"We have designated PetroChina as a fixed receiving point. There are a large number of safe houses in their park. If the subsequent conflict really spreads to the capital, it should be able to accommodate about 600 people."
"600 people?"
Lin Tao scratched his head subconsciously and continued to ask:
"There are more than 600 people in Suhua, right? I remember there should be more than a thousand people here."
"There won't be that many after the evacuation. PetroChina will evacuate 90% of its personnel. By then, the remaining Chinese personnel here should be less than 500."
Hearing this, Lin Tao finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"500 people. How are the supplies prepared?"
"All units have been notified to start preparing supplies. Large companies such as PetroChina, ZTE, and Huawei will assist in purchasing and collecting supplies."
“Also, there was a farm and they said they were willing to sell supplies at a low price.”
"What is it?"
"pig."
"pig?!"
Lin Tao was stunned.
You know, this is a green religion country. Raising pigs here is really very daring.
"How many heads are there?"
he continued to ask.
"Nearly 20 pigs. The boss is preparing to evacuate. The pigs cannot be taken away. We will dispose of them at a low price. We have notified all the demand parties."
"Forget it, don't interfere in this matter, let them handle it by themselves."
Lin Tao said speechlessly.
The clouds of war gradually began to envelope this land, and keen businessmen also smelled the smell of gunpowder in the air.
There is so much chaos that the matter of a few pigs is just a trivial matter.
"Understood, we are not participating."
Ma Yu nodded and replied.
Then, he continued to speak:
"We have found a suitable candidate for the inspection mission to Darfur that you arranged previously."
"He is a reporter from a newspaper stationed in South Sudan. He is currently covering South Darfur. He said that he can use local connections to go to North Darfur and get first-hand news."
"reporter?"
Lin Tao was a little hesitant.
In fact, he prefers to let more professional people do this, such as personal defense companies active in the local area, or arms brokers who make a living by selling intelligence.
These people have stronger military qualities and better understanding of local conditions.
The most important thing is that these will not be our own people.
If something happens, I won't feel bad.
Ma Yu on the opposite side hummed and explained;
"We have tried to contact local informants, but due to the current situation, defense companies are simply unwilling to accept orders, and the information given by arms dealers is not credible."
"We have been searching for a long time, but we have not found anyone we can trust."
"Now that this person has volunteered, I think we can consider it."
Hearing Ma Yu's words, Lin Tao nodded thoughtfully.
Then, he asked:
"What's the quality of this person? What's his resume?"
"He is very good in all aspects. He is an experienced war correspondent. He is proficient in Arabic. He has experienced two Gulf Wars. He has been in Russia this year. Moreover, he has just come down from Chechnya."
"It should be said that in terms of battlefield experience, he is better than many soldiers who have never been on the battlefield."
"The task of our initial communication with him is to determine the types of weapons used by local armed groups, make a list of weapons, and identify the parties involved in the conflict."
"If possible, find out how weapons circulate."
"These tasks are not too difficult for him, and the danger should not be too high."
"Um."
Lin Tao thought for a moment and said:
"Then let him do it."
"However, you must explain to him in advance that once he enters the Darfur region, we will not be able to provide him with any help, not even through Sudanese officials."
"He will be completely isolated. Think about this clearly."
"Understood, I will tell him."
Ma Yu replied.
After saying that, he was about to turn around and leave, but at this moment, Lin Tao suddenly stopped him.
"What's his name?"
Ma Yu was stunned and replied:
"Liu Guangyu."
South Darfur region.
Before getting on the truck heading to North Darfur, Liu Guangyu checked his equipment one last time.
"GPS, computer, camera, radio, water purification tablets, dagger, passport. Is there anything else you're missing?"
While arranging the messy equipment in order, he asked the blue helmet next to him.
The blue helmet smiled and shook his head and replied:
"If you ask me, you still lack an armored vehicle and a 130mm main gun."
"North Darfur is no joke. Whether you are in Iran, Iraq or Chechnya, at least people still recognize your face and your Chinese passport."
"But there, you might not even have time to take out your passport."
"Even if you take it out, it's almost impossible for people to understand the words on it."
Liu Guangyu rolled his eyes and continued to pack his backpack.
"So what? It's better than nothing."
"Besides, the Sudanese Revolutionary Front group is an organized warlord after all. They are different from the thugs in Mali and Chad. As long as the contact person is found, the danger should not be high."
"After all, they need media publicity too - I just have to pretend I'm with them."
"How do you pretend?"
Blue Helmet asked.
"Human rights, children, and the environment are all three things."
"I will play whatever cards the Americans play."
"As soon as the time passed, I made a round of violent remarks, saying that the official rule in Darfur seriously violated human rights, and children's rights were not protected. They were even forced to take up guns to defend their homes. The environment was also damaged due to the constant war. And suffered major damage. How about it, is there any smell from the BBC?"
Blue Helmet sighed and replied:
"There is indeed something wrong with it - but you'd better not say that you are from Xinhua News Agency. Our country cannot get involved in this kind of muddy water."
"I see."
Liu Guangyu nodded solemnly and continued:
"I will enter as a personal reporter. This is consistent with my past experience and they will not doubt it."
Blue Helmet shook his head and warned in a serious tone:
"Not necessarily. The current leader of the Revolutionary Front is Hamidi. His character has always been suspicious. If you want to contact him, you must be more careful."
"I know, I don't intend to involve it at such a high level."
Liu Guangyu zipped up his backpack and extended his right hand to Lan Helmet.
"Thank you for your care during this period. This is the last trip."
"If things go well, I will go directly to the capital Khartoum with the Revolutionary Front's negotiating team."
"If things don't go well, of course, I will try my best to send out news and intelligence."
"Don't be so arrogant."
Lan Helmet held Liu Guangyu's hand and warned again:
"Remember, you are just going there to confirm what happened, there is no need to pursue the hidden truth."
"We are just providing evidence for the military observation application, not completely solving the problem here."
"Protect yourself first. As for whether you can achieve your goal, don't think so much."
"You are not the only one in this country, and this is not the only solution. Do you understand?"
"clear."
Liu Guangyu turned over and got into the truck, and the engine roared to life.
He waved to the blue helmet, turned and ducked under the canvas.
Outside the truck, the familiar scenery continued to fade away, and Liu Guangyu's expression finally became serious.
In fact, he wasn't as calm as he appeared in front of the blue helmet.
At this moment, even though he was still thousands of kilometers away from the core battle zone in North Darfur, his heart was already beating violently.
Even before setting off, he had seen a lot of reports about North Darfur.
In those reports, most people used one word to describe the chaotic land:
living hell.
Ordinary people can't make a living, robbery is the only way out.
Warlords plundered everywhere, even children under the age of twelve.
Wild dogs eat corpses on the roadside, hungry vultures guard in front of people who are about to starve to death, and the stares between beasts and humans reveal the deepest despair in the world.
As we all know, the most famous photo of Cavinket was from this area.
Obviously, the situation here is much worse than the places he has stayed in before.
After all, whether it is Iran, Iraq or Chechnya, their decline is only because of war.
Suffering is temporary, and difficulties are also temporary. Even the two warring parties still maintain the most basic desire to rebuild.
But Darfur is different.
It's already a bare land here.
If you want to escape the fate of death, you can only abandon your homeland and move to the richer capital.
Therefore, in this situation, morality must be a rare term.
If it were not for the purpose of gaining support from the international community and showing their own "justice", I am afraid that the Revolutionary Front group would have already broken their skin.
Thinking of this, Liu Guangyu couldn't help but sigh deeply.
He realized that his action this time would definitely not go smoothly.
Of course, if you just go and have a look, that's fine.
But in my heart, just looking is not enough.
What I really want to do is to reveal to the international community the fig leaf that hides the evil, and let everyone see who is the person who caused this series of suffering.
Who is sending weapons to Darfur?
Who led the split between North and South Soviet Union?
Who imposed decades of sanctions on this country?
Who is openly fighting terrorism, but secretly condoning the brewing of terrorism here?
The answer is actually very clear, but until the evidence is thrown on the table, no one is willing to admit it.
And I am a reporter.
Since you don't admit it, I'll throw the evidence in your face.
With this idea in mind, Liu Guangyu spent six full days in the truck.
At first, there was silence in the wilderness, with only the chirping of insects, birds, and the roars of wild beasts occasionally echoing in the night sky.
Gradually, sporadic crackling sounds appeared in the air.
Those sounds came from AK-47s, from M-14s, from RPG rocket launchers.
The truck drove hard through the area, and at the end, another sound came from the intensive gunfire.
Those were human wails and screams.
After hearing this sound, Liu Guangyu immediately realized that his destination had arrived.
So, after the truck stopped, he turned over and jumped out.
The contact person of the armed organization who had been contacted for a long time had been waiting for a long time. After seeing Liu Guangyu, he walked forward enthusiastically and said:
"Welcome to Sudan."
Behind him, on one side were piles of brand-new weapons and equipment, and on the other side were low, dilapidated houses and civilians with dull eyes.
The road in the middle is like the dividing line between hell and earth.
