Sudan rebels 'will attack Chad'
2008-04-09 15:34
N'Djamena - Thousands of rebels massed in Sudan are about to attack neighbouring Chad in an attempt to destabilise it, Chad's defence minister says.
"Once again the regime of (Sudanese President) Omar Al-Bashir, as part of its determination to destabilise Chad, is massing, training and heavily arming thousands of its mercenaries on Chad's eastern frontier to launch attacks in the next few days," said Defence Minister Mahamat Ali Abdallah.
His statement was issued on the eve of a first session by a contact group tasked to implement a March 13 Dakar agreement to end the five-year conflict between the two African neighbours.
The members - Libya, the Congo Republic, Senegal, Gabon, Eritrea - as well as Sudan and Chad themselves, were set to convene on Thursday at Gabon's capital, Libreville.
United States, French, United Nations, European Union and African Union representatives were also expected to attend.
Non-aggression accords
The March 13 accord signed by Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno and his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Beshir aimed to cease hostilities and stop backing rebel groups active either side of the border.
The defence minister's statement appealed to the international community and mediators, saying preparations for "imminent attack" were underway "in flagrant violation of all peace and non-aggression accords signed between the two countries."
"Al-Beshir's aim is not only to destabilise Chad, but in time the entire central African region in line with an Islamic expansionism that does not speak its name," the minister's statement said.
The latest accusations came a week after fighting between the Chadian army and rebels in the east of the country.
The Dakar pact on the sidelines of a summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference was the outcome of strong international pressure on both leaders to end the five-year intermittent conflict.
An alliance of three rebel groups attacked N'Djamena over the weekend of February 02-03 after sweeping across the desert from bases in Sudan. They were driven out by Deby's troops with indirect military support from former colonial master France.
All rebel groups that participated in the offensive had signed a peace deal with the government last October.