Darfur rebel group declines German invitation

The Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdelwahid El Nur declined an invitation from the German government to meet with the peace talks delegation of the Government of Sudan.

The meeting would take place in Berlin this month with the participation of the main armed movements in Darfur, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the SLM led by Minni Minawi (SLM-MM).

The SLM-AW already received an invitation from the German government but re-affirmed its firm position considering the Sudanese peace file, by refusing to attend. Its leader, El Nur, told Radio Dabanga last weekend that “any negotiations with the government must be preceded by achieving security, stopping killings and rape, disarming the militias, expelling new settlers and compensating the displaced people”.

The goal of the German initiative is to revive the collapsed peace talks. In August last year, opposition parties under the Sudan Call (also referred to as Sudan Appeal) agreed to signing a roadmap agreement for peace with the Sudanese government, which stipulated the planning of negotiations.

The JEM and SLM-MM accepted the initiative, and the Sudanese government has yet to make its decision public.