UN envoy fears failure of Darfur talks over new clashes

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 9 (AFP) — Friday’s key talks between the government of Sudan and rebels in the troubled Darfur region could fail because of a new surge of violence, the UN’s envoy to the country said.

The talks in Nigeria, sponsored by the African Union, are aimed at resolving the conflict in Darfur, where an estimated 70,000 people have died since rebels rose up against the Khartoum government in February 2003.

Jan Pronk “fears that this round of negotiations … is headed for failure if the parties do not show restraint,” according to a statement from his office released at UN headquarters in New York on Thursday.

Pronk also blamed the government for the latest clashes Wednesday near El Fasher in north Darfur, saying its “military actions … led to the eruption of a new round of fighting.”

Earlier, chief UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said that the UN mission in Sudan had received reports of new fighting, including unconfirmed reports of aerial bombardment by government helicopter gunships.

He said there was no immediate word on casualties.

The talks are set to begin on Friday but rebel leaders have said that some of their envoys were having travel problems and it was not clear exactly when the welcoming ceremony, in the Nigerian city of Abuja, would be held.

Talks were suspended last month after Khartoum representatives and two of the Darfur region’s rebel groups agreed to sign protocols reinforcing a ceasefire and guaranteeing the safety of refugees.

The mainly black African rebels accuse Sudan’s Arab-led central government of persecuting their supporters and have demanded greater political autonomy and a larger share of the country’s oil wealth.

The United States said this week that the international community was “getting nowhere” in resolving the crisis.