Sudanese troops break a days-old cease-fire deal: Darfur rebels

N’DJAMENA, Chad, Dec 24, 2004 (AP) — Sudanese troops have launched a fresh offensive against a rebel group in the country’s troubled Darfur region, breaking a cease-fire agreement less than a week after it was declared, a rebel leader said Friday.

Four truckloads of Sudanese troops attacked a camp belonging to the rebel group, the National Movement for Reform and Development on Thursday, said Hassan Khamis, the group’s military and political coordinator.

Two insurgents were wounded and rebels captured an army truck as well as arms and ammunition, but it was unclear how many government troops were killed or wounded, Khamis said.

The Sudanese government said Monday that it was ordering its troops in three areas of Darfur to observe an immediate cease-fire. Tuesday, representatives of the two main rebel groups in Darfur announced at peace talks in Nigeria that their fighters wouldn’t initiate attacks.

Darfur cease-fires have been frequently violated. The first was declared in April. Another was declared in Nov. 9, and was broken by the rebel Sudan Liberation Army less than two weeks later.

Government troops also shelled rebel-held territory Friday and sent a military helicopter to study rebel positions, Khamis told The Associated Press.

“As we are speaking, they are shooting at our base … near the border with (neighboring) Chad,” Khamis said by satellite phone.

The attacks shatters the deal under which Sudanese authorities pledged to disarm pro-government militias and insurgents agreed to send their troops back to their barracks within two months, Khamis said.

“They are attacking us and the Sudanese Liberation Army,” he said, referring to Darfur’s main rebel group.

Under the short-lived cease-fire deal, both sides agreed to release prisoners of war and civilians detained during the 22-month conflict. They also promised to let aid groups deliver relief to thousands of people affected by violence in parts of the western region.

Disease and famine have killed 70,000 in Darfur since March, the World Health Organization says.

There is no official tally of the overall toll of the war but the U.N. says the nearly two-year crisis is the world’s gravest humanitarian disaster.

The conflict began in February 2003 when two non-Arab African rebel groups took up arms to fight for more power and resources from the Arab-dominated Khartoum government.