Former Darfur rebel leader killed near Sudan-Chad border area
May 12, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – A former Darfur rebel faction has announced the death of its leader Mohamed Bashar and his deputy, Suleiman Arko, saying they were killed during an attack carried out by the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) inside Chad near the Sudanese border.
Speaking to Sudan Tribune from Chad near where the incident occurred, Bashar’s adviser, Nahar Osman, said that over 30 rebel vehicles had attacked Bashar’s convoy in Pamina, 4kms from the common border between the two countries.
He added that Bashar and his delegation had not been under the escort of any military force, with the group accompanied to the border by only a lone Chadian security officer.
Asked to comment on the claims, JEM spokesperson Gibreel Adam Bilal confirmed the “clashes with Bashar’s group”, adding that their fighters repelled an attack by the splinter group.
Bilal said that Bashar forces had attacked their group’s base not far from the border with Chad, but rebel fighters stationed near the area had surrounded the assailants and dealt with them accordingly.
Meanwhile, JEM’s military spokesperson, Badawi Musa Al-Sakin, released a short statement, saying that Bashar’s group, supported by Chadian four-wheel drive vehicles and weapons had attacked them inside an area they control in remote North Darfur.
Sakin added they had “disarmed” the assailants, confiscating their weapons and ammunitions, but made no mention of the death of the dissident leader.
According to Osman 10 people were killed in the attack: “We lost Bashar, Suleiman Arko and another five members”, he said, adding that a Chadian security officer and two cattle keepers who were near the area were also killed in the attack.
Arko was the deputy chairman and led the negotiating team during peace talks with the Sudanese government.
In a statement released in Khartoum on Sunday, The National Security and Intelligence Services (NISS) confirmed the killing of the former rebel leader and his deputy, accusing JEM of seeking to topple ongoing efforts to end the 10-year conflict in Darfur.
The statement said the rebels who carried out the “terrorist crime” were led by three rebel commanders: Issa Al-Kuleib, Mahdi Hassab Allah, and Ibrahim Mahmoud.
The Chadian government has yet to comment on the incident.
Last April, JEM killed the deputy general commander of the breakaway faction, Saleh Moahmed Jarbo, following two-day clashes in the remote area of Furawiyya in North Darfur.
Osman reiterated that the group remains committed to the peace process in spite of the attacks that killed their former comrades.
(ST)