Sudan defense minister inspects South Darfur flashpoint town
February 6, 2009 (NYALA) — Sudanese defense minister, hailed during a visit Muhageriya yesterday the role of the armed forces for capturing the strategic town from the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).
The town was under daily bombing by the Sudanese warplanes since JEM took it on January 15 from fighters of Minni Minnawi, a former rebel leader turned Senior Presidential Assistant after a peace deal signed with Khartoum in May 2006.
The minister Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein, who visited the south Darfur town two days after its evacuation by JEM troops, told a public meeting in Muhageriya on Thursday he inspects the town upon the directives of the President Omer Hassan Al-Bashir.
He reaffirmed that the Sudanese army would work to extend the authority of the state and to protect civilians so that “they would enjoy stability and security in the area.” Also the minister visited the positions of the army and congratulated the soldiers for the scored victory.
Darfur peacekeeping mission said 30 people at least had been killed and thousands fled the fighting between the government troops and the rebels. The UNAMID also maintained its 190 troops in the town to protect the civilians and the IDPs who had take shelter around its compound after the massive destruction operated by the Sudanese warplanes.
Ali Mahmoud the governor of South Darfur state told the gathering he allocated 200 million Sudanese pounds for the rehabilitation of the affected town and directed the formation of a committee to assess the needs and services there.
Since last May after the attack of JEM on the capital Khartoum, the Sudanese army deployed more troops in Darfur and along the border with Chad where the rebels allegedly have their bases. As the government prepares for peace talks with the rebels in Doha, the armed forces pledged to clear the war torn region from the rebels led by Khalil Ibrahim.
Muhageriya had been since 2005 under the control of Minni Minawi’s troops. However the town had been since the start of Darfur rebellion in 2003 under the control of JEM rebels.
The seizure of Muhageriya by the Sudanese army for the first time since the beginning of Darfur conflict would allow the governmental troops to control the strategic location of South Darfur which at the juncture of the road to the oil installation in Southern Kordofan and the capitals of three Darfur states.
However, the former rebels led by Minni Minnawi announced that the control of the town by the Sudanese army is a clear violation of the military arrangements provided in Abuja peace deal with the government.
Also, JEM, which says it voluntarily withdrawn from the town to avert civilian casualties, threatened to re-attack the town if the Sudanese army enters Muhageriya.
(ST)