United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan on Wednesday called upon the Sudanese government and rebels to resume peace talks that were broken off this week in preparation for war.
"The secretary general is concerned at the suspension of the second round of peace talks between the government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) which had opened on August 12," Annan's spokesman said, according to AFP.
Kofi Annan "urges both sides to resume negotiations at the earliest opportunity and to build upon the progress made towards bringing an end to the devastating conflict in the Sudan which has caused untold suffering to their people," spokesman Fred Eckhard said in a statement.
On Monday, Sudan’s President Omar al-Beshir said he had ordered government negotiators at peace talks in Machakos, Kenya, to return to Khartoum immediately.
Additionally, Beshir declared general mobilization and ordered the army to unleash unrestrained war, "using all of its weapons", in a counter-attack to recover the key garrison town of Torit from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA).
Speaking at the funeral of a young army doctor who died in the battle of Torit, Beshir said he had given the army "a free hand to move out in all directions, to use all of its weapons, with no restraints, no restrictions, whatsoever."
(Albawaba.com)
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