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Sudan rebels claim major gains in new fighting

Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Wednesday, June 6, 2001

CAIRO — Rebel forces in southern Sudan have claimed major gains in fresh battles with government troops.

The battles between the Sudanese People's Liberation Army and troops loyal to the regime in Khartoum were said to have erupted on Sunday. SPLA forces were said to have launched an attack on a Sudanese military outpost in the province of Bahr Ghazal.

An SPLA spokesman told the London-based British Broadcasting Corp. that about 800 government troops have been killed or captured by his group. The spokesman said the battle continued into late Monday.

The Sudanese government has not responded to the SPLA assertion. But officials have acknowledged SPLA gains amid heavy fighting in the province over the last two weeks.

The latest SPLA report comes after the opposition and the regime in Khartoum failed to reach agreement on a ceasefire in the southern and eastern regions of Sudan. African leaders tried and failed to arrange a reconciliation meeting in Nairobi over the weekend between Sudanese President Omar Bashir and SPLA chief John Garang.

Garang rejected a ceasefire announced by Khartoum and said his troops would continue to fight until the rights of non-Muslims in Sudan are guaranteed and oil exploration in the south ends. Sudan's oil exports are said to be financing the war in the south.

Wednesday, June 6, 2001


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