Darfur rebels claim capture of town in west

By Sudanese opposition National Democratic Alliance radio

Jan 04, 2004 — In an urgent message from Darfur [western Sudan], the secretary- general of Sudan Liberation Movement [SLM], Mani Arkoi Minawi, said SLM’s forces yesterday Saturday, managed to capture Sha’yriah [phonetic] Province, 7 km west of Nyala town thus blocking the road to Khartoum.

Mani Arko Minawi said SLM’s forces were ready to liberate Nyala town [province’s capital] itself if the government continued to practice policies of ethnic massacres and targeting of civilians.

SLM’s secretary-general warned Al-Bashir’s government against using the Iranian Shahab missiles. He said SLM forces also managed to destroy a government’s mobile [force] near Kutum town [in Darfur].

BBC Monitoring Newsfile