Al-Anbaa: Khartoum accuses Garang of obstructing peace: Eritrea plays Israel's role

The Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Othman Ismael has accused the rebels in southern Sudan led by John Garang of obstructing peace and unity in the country. He set a precondition that Eritrea should stop the support it gives to the Sudanese opposition, in order to start Sudanese negotiations with it.

In statements issued yesterday by the Sudanese state- owned al-Anbaa daily, Ismael said that al-Nouba mountains will not return back to war, describing Garang's visit to the area as a "campaigning."

Ismael accused the People's Army For Liberation of Sudan of " trying to oppose the trend of peace." The paper quoted him as saying that the "citizens of al-Nouba will not return back to war after they had known the climate of peace, thanks to the ceasefire agreement." On Thursday, the rebels announced that 300 representatives from al-Nouba mountains gave authority to the rebels during a negotiation meeting they held in their names with Khartoum on the future of this region. The meeting which lasted for four days was held in one of al-Nouba mountains in the presence of Garang who held a visit to the region, as the first of its kind since 16 years.

The paper, on the other hand, quoted Ismael as saying that "Eritrea has been always interfering in the internal affairs of Sudan and the neighboring states." Ismael accused Eritrea of "playing the game Israel plays and other foreign countries," that he did not mention by name in " provoking conflicts and wars among the peoples of the region."