Sudan: Reports of new attacks
2004-10-29 10:31
Abuja - Rebel accusations that fresh government air-raids killed 26 civilians in Sudan's troubled Darfur region have cast a pall over peace talks in Nigeria, where African Union mediators trying to end the conflict are making little headway.
Mahgoup Hussain, a spokesperson for the rebel Sudan Liberation Army, said on Wednesday that the bombings occurred on Tuesday and Wednesday in the town of Allaiat, in eastern Darfur.
But Lieutenant General Mohammed Ismail, the deputy chief of staff of the Sudanese army, said there had been no fresh violence in the area.
"It is still continuing," Hussein said of the bombings, claiming the 26 dead included a pregnant woman. "Definitely this round (of negotiations) will not go well. It is not logical. You are coming here for peace, and you are bombing people over there."
No agreement yet
Hussein spoke in Abuja at the end of a third day of peace talks that have so far failed to yield any agreement.
An earlier round ended similarly in September, after rebels refused to sign a humanitarian accord giving aid organizations wider access to refugees. Rebels still insist they will not sign the already-drafted accord without an accompanying security agreement first.
Ahmed Tugod Lissan, spokesperson for the other rebel group attending the talks, the Justice and Equality Movement, was pessimistic.
"The government has not shown any sign of good intentions in Sudan... and this is seen by what is happening in eastern Darfur," he said.
Lissan said Sudanese government Russian-built Antonov aircraft had flown repeatedly on Wednesday over the town of Towisha, northwest of Allaiat, trying to "intimidate people".
He said they had not dropped bombs there and was unsure of violence elsewhere.
On Wednesday, about 100 delegates gathered around a large oval table at an international conference centre in Abuja, Nigeria's capital.
As on Tuesday, talks broke off early after the African Union failed to get the two sides to discuss a long-term political solution for Darfur.
See an agenda
Hussain said his group wanted to see an agenda before any political discussions and needed more time to prepare its own position before agreeing to face-to-face talks with the government.
The crisis in Sudan's western region began in February 2003 when rebels rose up against the Arab-dominated government, claiming discrimination in the distribution of scarce resources. Pro-government militias called Janjaweed reacted by attacking Darfur villages.
The United Nations has called Darfur the world's worst humanitarian crisis and said it has claimed 70 000 lives since March - mostly through disease and hunger.
Nearly 400 Nigerian soldiers are due to fly to Sudan's violence-wracked Darfur region on Thursday to bolster an African Union peacekeeping force that's supposed to grow to more than 3 000 troops.
- AP