Egypt welcomes Sudan peace deals

CAIRO, Dec 31, 2004 (Xinhua) — Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abul Gheit said Friday that Egypt welcomes the peace agreements signed by the Sudanese government and southern rebels in Kenya, the official MENA news agency reported.

The Khartoum government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement inked two deals in the Kenyan northwestern town of Naivasha earlier in the day, paving the way for the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement in early January.

Abul Gheit said the agreements put an end to a long conflict in the south of neighboring Sudan, hoping the settlement would help end other disputes either in Sudan or in Africa.

He hailed efforts by the Sudanese government and the southern rebel group to overcome differences and speed up the signing of the deals to meet a UN Security Council deadline.

The 21-year-old civil war in southern Sudan is the longest- running conflict in Africa.

The two sides pledged in November before the UN Security Council to sign a final peace deal by year-end.