Sudanese rebels urged to sign Darfur peace
Sudan-Regional, Politics, 5/3/2006

Egypt's Foreign Minster Ahmed Abul-Gheit on Tuesday held talks with advisor to Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir for Darfur affairs Abdullah Nassar.

Abul-Gheit underlined the importance of capitalizing on the current opportunity offered at Abuja for establishing peace in Darfur.

He further underscored the necessity of settling the Darfur crisis in accordance with a document proposed by the African Union, and approved by the Khartoum government.

The top Egyptian diplomat stressed the necessity that the international community should undertake responsibility for urging armed groups to positively respond to the stance of the Sudanese government.

Meantime, EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana has urged all Sudanese parties to sign the peace agreement negotiated by the African Union.

"The peace agreement must be seen as a matter of urgency. It offers serious guarantees to everyone, starting with the civilian populations of Darfur who, more than ever, need to return to security, peace and stability," he said in a statement.

Solana spoke yesterday with leaders of the rebel groups -- Abdul Wahid Mohamed El Nour (SLM), Minni Arkoi Minnawi (SLM) and Khalil Ibrahim (JEM) -- to urge them to do their utmost to conclude the negotiations.

He will also be in contact with Sudanese Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, noted the statement.

Yesterday, White House press secretaryScott McClellan said that the United States is acting "on multiple fronts" to reverse the deteriorating situation in the Darfur region of Suda.  He added that President George W. Bush called Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on May 1 to emphasize the importance of peace in Darfur.

In the phone call, Bush encouraged al-Bashir to send Sudanese Vice President Ali Tahal back to Abuja, Nigeria, for peace negotiations. US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick currently is attending the Abuja talks to help advance the peace process.

Bush hopes that the negotiations will reach a formal peace agreement, which involves integrating and disarming the Sudanese militias, said McClellan.  Northern and southern Sudanese military units need to join forces, he said.

On Tuesday, rebel and Sudanese government negotiators, meeting in Nigeria, extended the deadline to sign a deal ending the Darfur conflict until Thursday night.

A Washington Post report said the rebels are trying for a regional government for the Darfur area and a position of Vice President at the national level. The Washington Post also said that "The draft addressed complaints from Darfur rebel groups that they had been neglected by the national government. It called for the president to include a Darfur expert, initially nominated by the rebels, among his top advisers."

The Washington Post report said "In the draft, mediators also proposed that the people of Darfur vote by 2010 on whether to create a single geographical entity out of the three Darfur states, which would presumably have more political weight. Decades of low-level tribal clashes over land and water in Darfur erupted into large-scale violence in early 2003 when some ethnic groups took up arms, accusing the east African nation's Arab-dominated central government of neglect."

Nearly 200,00 people have been killed and over two million people displaced by the violence in Darfur which started three years ago.

Previous Stories:
  Mubarak in Algeria to settle difference on UN forces in Darfur   (4/4/2006)
  Meirghani for Egyptian- Libyan forces in Darfur   (3/20/2006)
  Sudan welcomes African Union decision on forces in Darfur   (3/13/2006)
  Darfur rebels welcome extension for African forces   (3/11/2006)
  UN experts urge crack down on arms smuggling to Sudan   (2/8/2006)

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