SLM commander denies reports on leading a Darfur faction
July 22, 2007 (AL-FASHER) — A rebel field commander denied reports describing him as a leader of a rebel faction in Darfur.
A news story published by Reuters from Khartoum over the weekend described JareNabi as the leader of a Darfur rebel faction.
Such allegation is “contrary to our logic for SLM/A unity.” Jar el-Neby said.
“We are working for the unity of the movement and we succeeded to reunite the field commanders from the different factions of the SLA. And we are very keen to go forward the political reunification of the movement” he added.
Jarelnabi stressed that the unity of Darfur’s main group is crucial for the success of the peace process undertaken by the African Union (AU) and the UN.
He praised Abdelwahid’s call for the international community to support a meeting for the SLM/A groups before Arusha meeting, describing it as a “good move”.
He said such a meeting will be a good opportunity for the political and military leadership to set up one position before the talks. Holding this conference “will help us avoid a new Abuja” he added.
Jarelnabi criticized reports saying SLM/A reunification is a difficult task, “People say it’s impossible to reunite the movement but we are confident that reunification is now closer than ever before” Jar el-Neby added.
However he cautioned that it is imperative to recognize Abdelwahid al-Nur as the legitimate leader of the movement, adding that the lack of dialogue has destabilized the ranks of the group.
Jarelnabi denounced the creation of new rebel umbrella in Asmara, which included the former vice president of SLM Khamis Abdalla Abakr, saying this move hinders the unity of the group.
The rebel commander said that a unity meeting will allow them to formulate a common position among the different factions and would help quell fragmentation because “there is no disagreement on the demands”.
“If some divergences are motivated by personal ambitions for power then this meeting is necessary to lay out these negative attitudes because our main goal remains the rights of Darfur people.” he added.
Jarelnabi said that his life is dedicated to the plight of Darfur people without any personal interest expressing confidence that the cause of Darfur people will prevail.
The rebel commander disclosed that all the SLA field commanders are in contact on the ground and coordinate their actions together without consideration for any political leadership saying “we want this spirit to be also true within the political leadership of the movement.”
(ST)