They carried their activity across to Darfur, bringing it the attention of many people who wouldn’t otherwise be aware of Sudan’s problems. But it has also attracted a bizarre mishmash of often conservative, religious groupings in an anti-Khartoum alliance.

Their black and white analysis has generally done more harm than good, and has sucked in people with a liberal viewpoint – including many of my esteemed colleagues in the press, who have a romantic notion that rebels are always the good guys.

As a result, the debate has been sucked into pursuing a military intervention while many people with a more complete understanding of what’s happening on the ground have said it is a bit of a red herring. The attention given Darfur by organisations such as the Save Darfur Coalition has ultimately done more harm than good, bringing forth solutions tailored to domestic public opinion rather than Darfur’s needs.