Darfur talks 'may unite rebels'

2007-10-24 13:43

Geneva - The United Nations' humanitarian chief said on Wednesday he hoped that upcoming peace talks on the Sudanese war-ravaged region of Darfur would eventually bring together all the rebel movements, even though some of them refused to participate in the meeting.

The talks between the Sudanese government and rebel groups, which would open on October 27, were challenged by the proliferation of rebel movements, which appeared to have different demands, said John Holmes, the UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs.

He said: "It's hard to get them all back together, united at least in terms of what their demands are.

"We know that some people will not be there." Holmes was referring to Abdul Wahid Elnur, a key Darfur rebel chief who had refused to attend the talks, to be held in the Libyan city of Sirte.

Sudan to announce ceasefire

Some other small rebel factions had also indicated that they would not participate in the meeting, he added.

Holmes said: But "we hope that once the talks start, others may join in later. It's not a once-for-all offer. It is possible to join later if the process starts to make progress".

On Monday, Sudan said it would announce a ceasefire with the rebels at the start of talks. Past ceasefires in Darfur had been regularly violated and it was doubtful that all rebel groups would sign on to a truce.

More than 200 000 people had died and 2.5 million had been uprooted since ethnic African rebels in Darfur took up arms against the Arab-dominated Sudanese government in February 2003, accusing it of decades of discrimination.

Sudan's government was accused of retaliating by unleashing a militia of Arab nomads known as the janjaweed - a charge officials denied.

Top rebel threatens to boycott talks

The government signed a peace agreement with one rebel group in May 2006, but other rebels refused - and many of those groups had since split, complicating prospects for a political settlement.

"The fragmentation of rebel movements makes the peace process very difficult because ... it's hard to know what is motivating them and what split them," said Holmes.

Another rebel leader, Khalil Ibrahim of the Justice and Equality Movement was also threatening to boycott the talks unless the UN and African Union could persuade the rival Sudan Liberation Army to unite its splinter factions for the negotiations.

The peace talks come "at a particularly difficult and delicate moment in Darfur", said Holmes. Renewed fighting had uprooted thousands of people in recent weeks and difficult discussions were taking place about the composition and deployment of a joint UN-AU peacekeeping force.

The UN and the AU were pressing to deploy the 26 000-strong force meant to replace a beleaguered 7 000-member AU force that had been unable to stop the bloodshed in Darfur.

- AP