Disputes between Minawi and ‘reform wing’ of Darfur faction

The Sudan Liberation Movement (Reform Wing) has decided to expel the SLM leader Minni Minawi and his deputy, Al Reeh Mahmud. At the same time, the movement faction announced that the new leader would be Mustafa Teerab who will head the leadership council, succeeding Minni Minawi, with Yahia Hassan Neel as his deputy. The faction has named 17 political and military leaders to the leadership council, in order to guide the conduct of affairs of the movement until holding of a general conference.Meanwhile, a reconciliation initiative within the movement has failed. The effort was led by Hassan Bargu and the lawyers Barud Sandal and Farouk Adam. These figures were tasked with trying to salvage what could be from the peace agreement of 2006. Barud Sandal, a member of this committee, said they had tried to bridge the gap between Minawi and his opponents in the movement. He noted, however, that they had thus far failed to reconcile them, owing to the government’s exploitation of the parties, as well as bickering and mutual accusations in the media. He explained to the Radio Dabanga that the committee stopped its efforts because of the tense atmosphere between the two factions. He was speaking from Khartoum.