Sudanese government to resume talks with Darfur rebels in February

KHARTOUM, Feb 13, 2005 (Xinhua) — A Sudanese official said here Sunday that peace talks between the government and the Darfur rebel groups will resume by the end of February in Abuja, capital of Nigeria, the Sudan News Agency reported.

“These talks will be decisive as the two agenda of the political compromise and social and economic handling for disputes in Darfur will be discussed,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Najeeb el-Kheir was quoted as saying.

Under the auspices of the African Union, the Sudanese government and rebels, the Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Movement, had held several rounds of peace talks in Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa and Abuja without major breakthrough.

Darfur has been embroiled in fighting since February 2003 when the rebels took up arms against Khartoum.

The conflict has so far caused thousands of deaths and sent over one million fleeing to neighboring Chad or internally displaced.

Peace talks between the government and the rebels often broke down as they accused each other of breaking a ceasefire deal they signed in April 2004.

Last October, the United Nations set a panel to investigate claims that a genocide had been committed in the region.

The UN panel concluded that the Sudanese government “has not pursued a policy of genocide” in war-ravaged Darfur but reported cases of human rights violation.