Darfur peace talks collapse

ABUJA, Nigeria – Peace talks between the Sudanese government and rebels for Sudan’s bloodied Darfur region have collapsed after three weeks, a rebel faction said yesterday.

“The talks have collapsed already,” said Ahmed Tugod Lissan of the Justice and Equity rebel group. But all sides – Sudan’s government, and Darfur’s two rebel movements – said they would abide by an African Union proposal to wait at least three weeks before any resumption of negotiations.Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Osman Ismail rejected yesterday a revised UN Security Council draft resolution threatening to consider sanctions on Sudan over the situation in the troubled Darfur region.”This is imbalanced, unfair and we are rejecting it as we rejected the first draft,” Ismail told a news conference Last-round talks late Monday had focused on trying to get both sides to sign an accord on humanitarian access to an estimated 1,2 million refugees from Darfur’s conflict.The partial agreement would have represented the one clear success for the internationally brokered talks.But despite urging from the Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo, who was hosting the talks, rebels of the Justice and Equity Movement said they would not sign the deal on access.”The president just intended to get us to sign the protocol.But for us it doesn’t make sense,” Lissan said.Sudan’s government blamed the rebels for the failure.”If they don’t sign” the humanitarian protocol, “then it’s their responsibility that the talks collapsed,” said Majzoub al-Khalifa Ahmad, one of the Sudanese government’s top negotiators at the talks.Leaders of the other rebel movement, the Sudan Liberation Army, yesterday morning were meeting privately about whether their faction would sign the humanitarian accord, Lissan said.- Nampa-APBut all sides – Sudan’s government, and Darfur’s two rebel movements – said they would abide by an African Union proposal to wait at least three weeks before any resumption of negotiations.Sudanese foreign minister Mustafa Osman Ismail rejected yesterday a revised UN Security Council draft resolution threatening to consider sanctions on Sudan over the situation in the troubled Darfur region.”This is imbalanced, unfair and we are rejecting it as we rejected the first draft,” Ismail told a news conference Last-round talks late Monday had focused on trying to get both sides to sign an accord on humanitarian access to an estimated 1,2 million refugees from Darfur’s conflict.The partial agreement would have represented the one clear success for the internationally brokered talks.But despite urging from the Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo, who was hosting the talks, rebels of the Justice and Equity Movement said they would not sign the deal on access.”The president just intended to get us to sign the protocol.But for us it doesn’t make sense,” Lissan said.Sudan’s government blamed the rebels for the failure.”If they don’t sign” the humanitarian protocol, “then it’s their responsibility that the talks collapsed,” said Majzoub al-Khalifa Ahmad, one of the Sudanese government’s top negotiators at the talks.Leaders of the other rebel movement, the Sudan Liberation Army, yesterday morning were meeting privately about whether their faction would sign the humanitarian accord, Lissan said.- Nampa-AP