New round of talks to end Darfur conflict planned for August

NAIROBI, Aug 4 (AFP) — Negotiations between the Sudan government and rebels in Darfur could resume this month in a bid to end what has been described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, the African Union said Wednesday.

The two sides are expected to sit down together by the end of August although no date or venue has been set, AU spokesman Adam Thiam said from the organisation’s headquarters in Addis Ababa.

International efforts to broker a crucial peace between the government in Khartoum and two rebel groups from the western Darfur region ran aground last month after the rebels walked out of talks.

The Darfur region has been riven by conflict since February last year, and the United Nations describes the situation there as the world’s worst current humanitarian crisis.

Up to 50,000 people have died and more than a million been driven from their homes since ethnic minority rebels — the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement — launched an uprising against the Sudanese army and its Arab militia allies, the Janjaweed.

The fighting has displaced 1.2 million people, with around 200,000 Sudanese fleeing to camps in the region of eastern Chad, where their security is also precarious.

The UN Security Council passed a resolution last Friday giving Khartoum 30 days to disarm the Janjaweed militia accused of committing atrocities against black civilians in Darfur.

It also requires Khartoum to allow free access for humanitarian groups and to secure the province to allow the displaced people and refugees to return home, or face international action.

Khartoum has confirmed it will take part in the AU-sponsored negotiations this month while the rebels have not yet decided their level of representation, the AU spokesman said.

“The international community is pressing for rebel chiefs to come,” Thiam said.