Opposition party says ties with ex-rebel group “stronger than ever”

Excerpt from report by Sudanese newspaper Al-Khartoum on 24 August by BBC Monitoring Middle East

Aug 24, 2005 (Khartoum) — The [opposition] National Ummah Party, led by Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi, has said its relations with the SPLM will remain unchanged and are now stronger than ever.

Ummah party Secretary General Dr Abd-al-Nabi Ali Ahmad said a meeting between the leader of the party and the vice-president of the republic, Maj-Gen Salva Kiir Mayardit, would be held within the next couple of days. He added that the meeting was aimed at discussing Sudan’s issues and how to push forward the peace process and democratic change, and congratulated Mayardit on his new position.

Dr Abd-al-Nabi denied that relations between his party and the SPLM were lukewarm pointing out that his party had recently celebrated the arrival of the SPLM leadership at its HQs. [Passage omitted]