ABUJA, 13 September 2004 — Rebel negotiators at African Union-brokered peace talks in Nigeria on the conflict in Sudan’s western Darfur region said yesterday they were hopeful ongoing consultations will break a deadlock on key issues. The peace talks between the Sudanese government and two rebel groups — the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) — were suspended until tomorrow because of differences over security and disarmament.
“I think we are becoming hopeful. The informal discussions going on at the instance of the special envoy may eventually break the deadlock,” SLM spokesman Abduljabbar Dofa said in the Nigerian capital. Dofa said the rebel groups “are very anxious to make peace so as to end the agony and killing of our people.”
During the suspension of the talks, AU special envoy Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar, a Nigerian former military ruler, has been meeting with Sudanese government officials and rebel leaders to try to bridge the gap.
