Sudanese army suffered “historic defeat” in South Kordofan: Arman
January 28, 2015 (LONDON) – The secretary-general of the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), Yasser Arman, said its forces had inflicted an historic defeat on the Sudanese army (SAF) in South Kordofan state.
Arman added their forces have inflicted the largest defeat on the Sudanese army during the recent battles in the Nuba Mountain.
He also downplayed repeated threats made by the Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir to defeat rebellion in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile soon, stressing Bashir’s militias suffered a strategic defeat in South Kordofan.
“Bashir knows he cannot crush what he calls rebellion,” he added.
The SPLM-N official pointed the regime dispatched 10.000 militiamen and more than 500 vehicles loaded with weaponry, cannons and T 72 and T55 tanks to Nuba Mountains, underscoring these militias suffered “strategic defeat”.
“The SPLM-N forces seized more than 100 Dushka cannons and a T 72 tank for the first time,” he said.
He said the government attack was the biggest in the history of the war which erupted in 2011, underscoring their forces seized dozens of vehicles and destroyed a significant number of tanks and machinery.
Arman also claimed the SPLM-N forces are now besieging the government army’s garrisons in Kadougli and Talodi which are considered to be the most important garrisons in the Nuba Mountain.
Reports from the areas say the Sudanese army war planes are bombing on daily basis areas held by the rebel fighters. The Sudanese forces use the air stacks to prevent the movement of hostile troops abut also to prepare for ground attacks.
The SPLM-N secretary-general added the most important news is that the SRF militias at Talodi garrison have mutinied, also accusing them of raping women in the area.
“The defence minister, Abdel-Rahim Mohamed Hussein, and the director of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), Mohamed Atta, paid a secret visit to Talodi to convince the renegade militia to continue their fight against the SPLM-N forces. But they refused and seized more than 150 vehicles loaded with weapons and equipments and headed towards Darfur,” he said.
The SRF militiamen are mainly from Darfur area.
In August 2013, the government formed the SRF from the former Janjaweed groups recruited to fight Darfur rebels in the past.
Since the failure of AU-mediated peace talks last November, the Sudanese army stepped up its rhetoric against the SPLM-N rebels and vowed to crush them in the military campaign known as the “Decisive Summer” operation.
South Kordofan and neighbouring Blue Nile state has been the scene of violent conflict between the SPLM-N and SAF since 2011.
ALLIANCES AND PEACE TALKS
Arman emphasised the SPLM-N is committed to its alliances with the other opposition forces, saying they would not abandon the “Sudan Call” declaration the rebels co-signed with the main opposition parties and civil society groups last December.
The “Sudan Call” accord, which was in Addis Ababa, calls for ending the war, dismantlement of the one-party state, achievement of a comprehensive peace and democratic transition in the country.
He said they seek to unite all forces of change including the Islamists who wish to realise change.
“That is why we will adhere to our declared positions in the upcoming round of talks. We seek to achieve a comprehensive solution for all Sudanese people and we also want to end the war in the Blue Nile, South Kordofan and Darfur. We want a real change not a [bilateral] deal with this brutal regime,” he said.
The discussions over a framework agreement for negotiations to end the three-year conflict in the Two Areas are expected to resume next February.
The SPLM-N chief negotiator said that Bashir has no option other than to accept change or he will be forced out.
He pointed to continuous contacts with the African mediation and its chief, Thabo Mbeki, saying they will not accept partial solutions which do not stop the war and bring about freedoms for the Sudanese people.
Peace talks between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N remain deadlocked after they failed to reach a common ground for negotiations. While the government says it is only willing to discuss the conflict in the Two Areas, the SPLM-N is demanding that the framework agreement handle the relation between the conflict in the Two Areas and national dialogue.
SUDAN AND NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES
In another context, Arman warned against continued support of Arab countries to the Sudanese government, noting these countries will end up suffering from the outcome of the current conditions if they do not support demands of the Sudanese people.
“We know that Bashir and his regime are a major party in the ongoing war in Libya (…) they send weapons to the Islamic groups and there is a plan to bring the Islamists to power in Libya. Khartoum is also involved in what is going on in Yemen and they also send arms to the groups which seized power in Yemen,” he said.
He said that Khartoum orchestrated an orderly action in Central African Republic (CAR), pointing to the presence of militias belonging to the Sudanese regime in Libya.
“There is an Iranian military industrial complex operated by Iranian experts in Khartoum and it exports weaponry,” he said.
He likened the Sudanese regime to the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL), saying it ruled Sudan for 25 years.
Last September, Tripoli accused Qatar and Sudan of backing Islamist militias by sending arms shipments into the restive north African nation.
(ST)