Sudan 'bombs rebels' day after Darfur deal

Sudanese forces bombed rebel positions in Darfur on Wednesday, with the ink barely dry on a deal between Khartoum and the strongest rebel group that was hailed as a turning point in efforts to end the six-year conflict. "We have been attacked by the NCP troops," Justice and Equality Movement commander Suleiman Sandal told AFP, using the acronym for Khartoum's ruling National Congress Party. "People died on both sides." The fighting came just a day after Khartoum and the JEM, Darfur's most active rebel group, signed an accord lding agreement in Doha paving the way for broader talks aimed at ending the conflict that has left hundreds of thousands of people dead and homeless. Sandal said the army, backed by forces from a former rebel group and the Janjaweed militia, attacked JEM positions near the town of El-Fasher, home to the United Nations-African Union peacekeeping force's main base. Sudanese aircraft also bombed rebel positions in the area of Jebel Marra, a volcanic range in central Darfur, Sandal said. Fighting also erupted between the Sudanese army and the Sudan Liberation Army faction of Abdel Wahed Mohammed Nur in eastern Jebel Marra, he added. It was not possible to confirm details with the peacekeeping force. However, a government official confirmed the fighting. Senior foreign ministry official Mutrif Siddiq said the fighting was going on because JEM had taken new territory since they were "chased out" of the town of Muhajaria which they occupied in January. "The combats go on for one simple reason. The JEM had occupied areas that are not their original areas." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had hailed Tuesday's deal as "constructive," while EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said it was an "important step in the right direction." Solana called on the parties involved "to continue on this path and to start implementing this engagement," with a view to an eventual "cessation of hostilities, one of the prerequisites to end the conflict in Darfur." Details of the accord -- reached after a week of talks brokered by Qatar -- were sketchy, but it includes a prisoner swap, officials said. According to the United Nations, 300,000 people have died and more than 2.2 million fled their homes since ethnic minority rebels in Darfur rose up against the Arab-dominated Khartoum government in February 2003. Sudan, whose President Omar al-Beshir is facing a possible international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes including genocide in Darfur, puts the death toll at 10,000. Siddiq blamed the fighting on what he said was JEM's refusal to discuss a cessation of hostilities. "They only accepted these confidence building measures. They have denied us the opportunity to reach the stage where there will be no hostilities between the two forces," Siddiq said.