Darfur rebel leader rejects sanctions threat
By Estelle Shirbon

May 16, 2006 -(Reuters) A rebel leader from Sudan's Darfur region on Tuesday rejected an African Union threat to impose sanctions on him if he did not sign a peace deal by May 31 to end fighting that has killed tens of thousands of people.

On Monday the AU extended by two weeks a deadline for two holdout rebel groups to endorse the deal, but stepped up the pressure by threatening sanctions if they did not sign.

The Khartoum government and the biggest faction of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), led by Minni Arcua Minnawi, signed the agreement on May 5 but a rival SLA faction led by Abdel Wahed Mohammed al-Nur rejected it. Smaller rebel group the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) also refused to sign.

The international community fears the accord will not stop the war if only one rebel faction supports it. Refugees have rioted against the deal in several camps in Darfur.

"I urge the AU, instead of threatening us, to cooperate with us in order to add a supplementary document to the peace accord which is the only way to reach a comprehensive peace agreement," Nur said in Nigeria's capital Abuja, where the deal was signed.

Nur has demanded that Khartoum make extra concessions to him in an annex accord before he signs the broader peace deal.

The rebels took up arms in early 2003, accusing the Arab-dominated central government of neglecting Darfur, an arid, ethnically mixed region the size of France in western Sudan.

Khartoum enlisted Arab Janjaweed militias to crush the insurgency. The ensuing campaign of murder, rape and looting has driven more than 2 million people from their homes in what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

Pressure on Khartoum

Pressure is increasing on the government to drop its opposition to a U.N. force that would take over from cash-strapped, poorly-equipped AU peacekeepers in Darfur.

After the AU endorsed the transition on Monday, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution on Tuesday pressing Khartoum to let U.N. military experts into Darfur within a week to start planning for the new force.

Meanwhile, diplomats expect no let-up in international efforts to persuade the SLA's Nur to sign the peace deal.

Although he has less military clout than his rival Minnawi who has signed the deal, his endorsement is seen as crucial because he represents Darfur's largest tribe, the Fur.

The AU Peace and Security Council said in a communique on Monday night: "Failing (a signing) it shall consider measures, including sanctions, to be applied against the leadership and members of the concerned groups."

The AU said it would push for a United Nations travel ban and asset freeze against any individual or group that violated the ceasefire agreement or blocked the enforcement of the deal.

"My belief is that sanctions are for those who commit crimes. We are not criminals, we are freedom fighters," Nur told Reuters.

"We agree with them that anyone who violates the ceasefire should be sanctioned, except when it is in self-defence."

Among his conditions to sign are more compensation from Khartoum for Darfur war victims, more political posts for the SLA and greater involvement in the disarmament of the Janjaweed.

The other holdout group, the JEM, is not considered so important because it has few fighters and less influence.

From: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L16708068.htm