Nine killed in southern Sudan clashes

Press TV, Sat Jan 8, 2011 4:37PM

A village in south Sudan's Mayom district At least nine people have been killed and several others were wounded in southern Sudan on the eve of a landmark referendum in the troubled region.

The clashes took place between two rebel groups and Sudanese soldiers in Unity State.

Over two dozen rebels have been arrested since clashes erupted on Friday. The violence comes ahead of the referendum in southern Sudan on Sunday in which around four million southerners are expected to vote in favor or against secession from northern Sudan.

President Omar al-Bashir has warned that southern Sudan is not ready for independence and could face instability. He has however promised to accept the referendum's result.

Reports say al-Bashir has been under intense pressure from the United State to ensure the vote goes ahead on schedule to avoid returning to civil war.

Results are expected on January 15th. The referendum is part of a 2005 peace deal that ended the country's bloody civil war.

This is while a senior Sudanese official says the US and Israel were playing a key role in sowing seeds of discord and fueling the country's civil war and the unrest in its south.

“The Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, is likely to be escalating the conflict,” Sudanese Ambassador to Tehran Suleiman Abdel Towab told Press TV on last Sunday.

The envoy added Israel sees his country as a threat as Sudan is an Islamic state and very popular in Africa.

“Sudan is like a bridge between Africans, Arabs and Muslims, So Israel and the US seek to control the Sudanese government and impose sanctions on it,” he said.

The country was plagued by a civil war for 16 years before a truce between the government forces and the rebels in the south in 2005.

JR/HGH/MMN

Al-Bashir warns of instable south Sudan

Press TV, Sat Jan 8, 2011 9:36AM

 Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir has warned that south Sudan will likely face insatiability, in the event it gains independence from the north.

Speaking to al-Jazeera TV network on Friday, Bashir expressed concerns about possible instability in the south following the voting, saying that the south may not have the ability to cope with many problems.

"The stability of the south is very important to us because any instability in the south will have an impact on the north. If there is a war in your neighbor's house, you will not be at peace," he said.

"The south suffers from many problems. It's been at war since 1959. The south does not have the ability to provide for its citizens or create a state or authority."

Earlier on Tuesday upon his arrival in the southern capital Juba, he promised that he would welcome the result of the upcoming referendum, whatever it may be.

Reports say Bashir has been under intense pressure from the United State to ensure the vote goes ahead on schedule to avoid returning to civil war.

In the week-long referendum in Sudan, which begins on Sunday, some four million southerners will get to vote in favor or against secession from northern Sudan.

The referendum is being held as part of the 2005 peace deal that ended two decades of civil war. According to the deal, at least 60 percent of registered voters must cast ballots for the result to be valid.

Results are expected on January 15th.

AO/MGH