Rebel official says Sudan govt preparing “attack” on southern town

NAIROBI, Nov 1, 2004 (Al-Sahafah) — The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army [SPLM/A] has accused the government of assembling large numbers of its allied southern factions in Malakal — in Upper Nile State — ahead of launching an attack on the SPLM/A positions in Bor.

SPLA soldiers guard a village in Southern Soudan.

In a statement to Al-Sahafah yesterday, the SPLM/A security and intelligence official, Edward Lino, urged the government to work seriously towards peace and warned that any steps to escalate the situation would have dire consequences on the peace process, pointing out that the SPLM/A was monitoring the transport of military equipment by helicopters ahead of an attack by the southern factions on Bor.

Lino denied reports that Dr Lam Akol Ajawin had broken away from the SPLM/A. He also denied anew that he had been relieved from his post as the SPLM/A security official, pointing that that such reports were propagated by people who wanted to create divisions within the SPLM/A.

Lino left Cairo yesterday for Geneva to take part in the conference of land mine removal in southern Sudan

Material from the BBc Monitoring Service