Sudan, JEM-Bashar sign protocol on political and military participation

A Darfur rebel faction and the government of Sudan signed on Friday a protocol confirming the impending participation of the group in the country’s political and military affairs. This Protocol is the last negotiated document between the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) breakaway led by Mohamed Bashar Ahmed and the Sudanese regime.It is established in the framework of the ongoing Darfur peace process on the basis of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD). In a statement, the mediation team said it “considers this achievement as an important step that would contribute to forging peace and stability in Darfur in particular, and in Sudan in general.” Mohamed Bashar Ahmed began direct negotiations with the Sudanese government in Qatar last October focusing on the Doha Document, the peace deal signed in mid-2011 by the Liberation and Justice Movement led by Tijani Sese, and backed by the Gulf emirate. Last Sunday, the faction joined the Doha peace agreement, which governs relations between the Sudanese government and Darfur armed groups that have left the rebellion. JEM, which has not joined the peace negotiations, denies having any connection with JEM-Bashar.  File photo: Mohamed Bashar AhmedRelated: JEM faction heading towards political participation: Sudan official (27 March 2013)