Chadian officials meets rebels in bid to open peace talks

March 18, 2008 (NDJAMENA) — A Chadian government team has discussed opening peace talks with one of the rebel groups that stormed the capital last month in a bid to oust the president, sources from both sides said Tuesday.

The discussions with the Rally of Forces for Change (RFC) rebels, which is led by President Idriss Deby Itno’s nephew, Timan Erdimi, were held in eastern Chad, the sources said.

“For the moment, the meeting has not arrived at concrete results,” a source close to the government told AFP.

An RFC member confirmed the meeting near the Sudan border to AFP and said the delegation from the rebel group was to now join the group’s leader, Timan Erdimi, to look at possible ways forward.

The rebels have proposed four conditions, he said. They include opening any talks abroad, compensation for RFC fighters, power-sharing and a national forum including all Chadian political groups.

“Those are unacceptable conditions for Deby. That’s not going to result in anything,” the RFC member said.

Members of the government team were mostly from the Zaghawa clan, which the president, Erdimi and many RFC members also belong to.

Erdimi, one of two main rebel leaders and formerly the director of the president’s office, threatened Sunday to attack the country’s oil-producing south. He said Deby still refused to enter into talks because he was protected by France and United States.

An alliance of three rebel groups attacked Ndjamena over the weekend of February 2-3. They were driven out by Deby’s troops with indirect French military support.

All rebel groups that participated in the offensive had signed a peace deal with the government last October.

(AFP)