40 killed in south Sudan; British mediator in Khartoum
Sudan, Politics, 9/19/2002

The Southern Sudan rebels announced on Wednesday the killing of more than 40 persons during the clashes with government forces which used its air force, and called for putting pressure on Khartoum in order to return back to negotiations.

The Sudan People's Liberation Army said that the government attacked several of its positions in the south, and bombarded several villages and killed civilians. The statement appealed to "the international community to make pressure on Khartoum to return back to negotiations." The spokesman for the rebels, Samsoun Kawaji, said that 30 government soldiers and 13 rebels were killed in a clash on Sunday between the rebels and a government vehicle while it was trying to attack the rebels' positions in southern area rich in oil fields, noting that the government forces were backed from the air by one Antonove Plane and two helicopters. He indicated that 12 civilians, five women and 7 children were killed in an air raid against villages.

Meantime, international contacts have increased with the Sudanese government in order to urge it to return back to the table of negotiations.

The British special envoy for peace Allen Goulti started talks with senior officials in Khartoum, in his second visit since the suspension of talks in the beginning and September.

The advisor of the Sudanese presidency Ghazi al-Atabani said that his talks with Goulti dealt with means of eliminating the current bottlenecks. Al-Atabani called on the mediators who are led by Kenya and the UN observers by the US to provide practical proposals to eliminate the obstacles that prevent the resumption of negotiations.

Previous Stories:
  Israeli airport for Sudanese rebels; Al-Mahdi denies government contact   (9/18/2002)
  Sudan, French FMs held talks in New York   (9/16/2002)
  Alwan: Muslim Brothers and the Islamic Sharia law in Sudan   (9/16/2002)
  British peace envoy in Khartoum   (7/13/2002)
  Sudanese minister confers with British international cooperation minister   (1/8/2002)
  Appointing a new Sudanese ambassador in U.K   (3/27/2000)

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