Darfur crisis remains top priority of Sudan’s govt – FM

September 4, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol reiterated on Tuesday that the crisis in the western Sudanese region of Darfur remained the top priority of the government.

“The Darfur issue is the number one issue in Sudan,” the foreign minister told a forum attended by ambassadors of Arab countries in Khartoum.

Lam Akol noted that the issue, however, had taken different forms at the international level. “Some circles are trying to exploit the issue to serve their own interests while others falsely speak of deterioration of the conditions in the region.”

The Sudanese minister announced that President Omer al-Bashir had formed a preparatory committee for the Arab donors conference, which is to be held in Khartoum on Oct. 30-31, on provision of humanitarian assistance to the Darfurians affected by the conflict.

He added that the committee was chaired by Presidential Adviser Mustafa Osman Ismail and himself.

Meanwhile, President al-Bashir on Tuesday assigned Nafie Ali Nafie, his assistant and deputy chairman of the ruling National Congress Party, to take the responsibility of the Darfur file, succeeding late presidential aide Majzoub al Khalifa, who died in a traffic accident in last July.

Al-Bashir also called for an enhancement of the security situation in Darfur, saying that any positive progress in this respect would motivate the voluntary return of the internally displaced people to their towns and villages.

(Xinhua)