AFRICA/SUDAN - Recent violence is no threat to peace talks between government and main rebel group in Darfur

Khartoum (Agenzia Fides) – “The news from Darfur on new fighting comes as no surprise. It was sadly predictable that groups excluded from the agreement under Doha would try to be make their presence known in this way,” Fides learns from Vittorio Scelzo, who is following the talks in Doha (Qatar) on behalf of the Community of Sant'Egidio. There, on February 23 (see Fides 24/2/2010), the cease-fire and a framework agreement was signed by Amin Hassan Omar, leader of the Sudanese negotiators, and Tugud Ahmed, leader of the delegation of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). According to UN sources, in the days following the signing of the Doha at least 140 people were killed in clashes in Darfur between the army and the Sudan Liberation Army-Abdelwahid, one of the groups that did not join in the agreements.
"The Doha Agreement has changed the game,” explains Scelzo. “Those who are excluded have two ways to try and sit at the negotiating table and at the same time improve their chances of negotiation. On the one hand, unite to strengthen their political position and on the other, intensify military operations in Darfur to show their presence on the ground."
On February 23, the day of the signing of the Doha Agreements, 10 Darfur rebel groups joined in a common organization, the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), which intends to sign a truce with Khartoum, an event that has attracted strong criticism from the JEM, which has threatened to abandon negotiations in order to reach a final peace agreement (see Fides 27/2/2010).
According to Scelzo, however, the violence in Darfur will not hinder the continuation of negotiations for a final agreement between the Khartoum government and the JEM: "The negotiation continues, and I do not think that the situation is cause for concern. Most of the groups that have not acceded to the Framework Agreement are small and do not have a strong military capability, except for the SLA (Sudan Liberation Army)." (LM) (Agenzia Fides 3/3/2010)