W. Sudan rebels say killed 1,000 govt troops, militia

CAIRO, Jan 19 (Reuters) – Rebels from Sudan’s remote western Darfur region said on Monday they had killed more than 1,000 government troops and militias who attacked a rebel stronghold town on the border with Chad.

Two main rebel groups launched a revolt in Darfur in February accusing the Khartoum government of sidelining the arid area. Fighting has intensified since peace talks with one group collapsed in December with both sides blaming each other.

“For the last four days there has been fighting. There are 12,000 government forces. Until now over 1,000 government troops and militia on horses have been killed,” said Khalil Ibrahim, leader of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).

Captain al-Naim from the office of the Sudanese army spokesman in Khartoum said:

“As yet we have not received an appraisal report from the field so we cannot comment on these specific incidences but as soon as we do we will be releasing information.”

Analysts say the escalating conflict in Darfur could undermine an impending peace deal now being negotiated in Kenya with a different rebel group to end two decades of civil war in the south of Africa’s largest country.

JEM’s Ibrahim said the rebels were using rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank weapons and had shot down three Apache helicopter gunships.

The other rebel group, the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), confirmed both movements were fighting together to defend the border town of Tina.

JEM’s losses were “minimal”, Ibrahim said, while SLA estimated about 100 of its troops were killed. Ibrahim declined to comment on the total number of rebels fighting, but a correspondent who recently went to the area estimated JEM’s troops at about 12,500.”

CALL FOR WIDER DISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH

Ibrahim also said JEM would negotiate with Khartoum in the presence of impartial international observers if the government disarmed the militias and redistributed Sudan’s oil wealth and power to include the whole country.

Sudan’s interior minister told Reuters last week Sudan was ready for renewed talks and had not set preconditions.

JEM refused to join Chad-mediated talks between the SLA and Khartoum, saying the government was not serious about a deal. Ibrahim said Chad was biased against the rebels and was cooperating with Khartoum to attack rebel positions in Darfur.

“We are accusing Chad of being involved. They are part of this attack now,” he said, but added that if Chad stopped its involvement he would accept them as a mediator for talks.

“This means I’m not going to Chad now. But the United Nations asked Chad to mediate so we are willing to accept the U.N. call,” Ibrahim said.

Ibrahim said the Kenya talks, where a key wealth-sharing accord was signed earlier this month, would not secure a lasting peace in Sudan because they excluded Darfur.

“The government must be ready to talk about sharing the power and resources with the whole country because what is going on in Kenya is between two minorities,” he said. “They must redistribute what they have decided now in wealth.”

“We will not stop our war unless we get our rights. There may be a temporary peace for the south but it is not peace for Sudan,” he added.