Libyan leader to meet Darfur rebel groups next month
June 24, 2006 (TRIPOLI) — The Libyan leader invited the different Darfur rebel groups in a bid to convince opposed groups to sign the African Union brokered Darfur Peace Agreement signed in Abuja on 5 May.
Reliable sources confirmed the participation of the three Darfur rebel groups saying delegations are heading to Tripoli to attend a meeting convened by the Libyan leader Muammer Gadhafi to discuss the reasons of their refusal to sign Darfur Peace Agreement.
The meeting is planed for Sunday 2 July.
The rebel SLM al-Nur faction and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) refuse to sign Darfur Peace Agreement, saying Khartoum has to meet crucial demands related to militias’ disarmament, power sharing and individual compensations for Darfur affected civilians.
Rebel sources said “without genuine guaranties from Gadhafi on how Khartoum will meet their demands” the two rebel groups will reject the Libyan initiative.
The holdout rebel groups, particularly SLM-al-Nur, intend to exploit the after 5 May mounting popularity and the regular protests organized by the Darfurians in western Sudan and Khartoum against the signed peace deal, to demand full satisfaction to their demands.
Minawi approves the Libyan move as he is in difficulty with the rejection of a deal that he signed without the approval of his delegation and faces probable troubles within his group.
Earlier in June, the Sudanese First Vice-President Salva Kiir tried to hold such meeting but the holdout rebel groups rejected his initiative only Minawi went to the meeting in southern Sudan.
(ST)