Darfur rebels threaten to target Khartoum

A spokesman for the main rebel movement in Darfur ( the Sudan's liberation movement) in Abuja yesterday threatened to transfer the conflict from Darfur to Khartoum if the government will continue to completely ignore his movement's demands in the negotiations which stopped on Saturday and resumed on Sunday, at a time when differences surfaced between the movement and the "al-Adel wal Musawat" ( Justice and equity) movement on the ground of the tough position taken by the former in the question of separating religion from the state, which was rejected by Khartoum.

The official spokesman for the Sudan's liberation movement, Mahjoub Hassan, said that "if the government will not deal with us reasonably," with the demands of his movement for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Darfur. His movement can bring in "the war to Khartoum." He called on the Sudanese government to "take this warning seriously." He stressed that the negotiations which started on Monday in Abuja under the auspices of the African Union "is stumbled because the government has no political strategy to deal with Darfur crisis."

He accused the government's delegation of working to win time and that it came to the negotiation in order to lessen international pressure on Khartoum.

Hussein said that his government demands separating the state from religion and of initiating "a genuine federation and to allocate part of oil revenues in order to compensate for the victims of the conflict in Darfur."

Meantime, differences surfaced between the two rebel movements in Darfur because of the liberation's movement debate of the issue of separating religion from the State which was strongly opposed by Khartoum, besides having not receive enthusiasm from al-Adel wal-Musawat movement.

Mahjoub Hussein said that this issue is very important "because religion was used in our country to kill and marginalize people." However, the spokesman for al-Adel Wal-Musawat Ahmad Hussein said "I think this matter should be left for the Sudanese people to decide on it through vast consultations." He added "we did not carry the weapons in order to dismantle religion from the state, rather to fight against marginalization."

Meantime, some 100 troops from Rwanda arrived in Darfur in two American transport planes to join the African forces in the district. Some 65 troops of these forces arrived in Darfur on Saturday.