Sudan rebels say attack government near Darfur

KHARTOUM, Dec 27 (Reuters) – A new rebel group from the western Sudanese Darfur region said it attacked government forces in an area neighbouring Darfur on Monday, killing 150 soldiers and policemen and stealing equipment.

A Sudan Liberation Army rebel patrols the desert west of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. (Reuters).

But Sudan’s official news agency SUNA said the rebel attack killed only two policemen and three civilians in the town of Ghubeish in Western Kordofan state, which borders Darfur. SUNA said government forces repelled the attack.

It was not possible to independently confirm either report.

The leader of the Sudanese National Movement for the Eradication of Marginalisation (SNMEM), which first emerged when it claimed an attack last week on a small oil installation, said his forces attacked six army and police bases in Kordofan.

“Today we attacked government forces in six places and inflicted complete destruction and took their equipment,” Ali Abdel Rahim el-Shindy told Reuters from an undisclosed location in central Sudan.

“We killed 150 of their forces, with very small losses on our side,” he said, adding the rebels now controlled the bases.

SUNA said only five people were killed and three vehicles, including a police car, were stolen in the attack on the town about 700 km (450 miles) southwest of Khartoum.

The SNMEM had earlier said it attacked the Sharif oil pumping station because the government was not distributing oil wealth fairly. Police said 15 people died in that attack.

Two main rebel groups launched a revolt against Khartoum in early 2003, complaining of neglect and accusing the government of arming Arab militias known as Janjaweed to burn and loot African villages.

The government said it used some militias but denies links to the Janjaweed, whom it calls outlaws.

The two main groups, the Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), had been involved in stalled talks in Nigerian capital Abuja to end the conflict.

The United Nations says fighting in Darfur has led to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.