Abyei clashes spill over into Southern Kordofan
Observers say the incidents of violence in Kadugli, the capital of Southern Kordofan, are a reaction to events in the disputed region of Abyei, especially given the SAF's top command stating that the SPLA should be evacuated from the area.
This contradicts the Nuba Mountains Protocol, part of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that allows the presence of Joint Integrated Units (JIUs) from both northern and southern armies to remain in Southern Kordofan until April 2012.
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The SPLM maintains that separating the JIUs is a flagrant breach of the peace agreement.
It also considers the recent violence an aim by the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) to impose military control over the region after recent elections that were widely suspected to be fraudulent.
After Abyei, Darfur and the recent attacks on Unity State, Southern Kordofan marks the fourth region in Sudan where violence has flared in recent weeks.
At the same time, the ruling NCP accuses the SPLM of triggering the clashes in Southern Kordofan after losing the recent elections.
The violence in Kadugli is an individual act by one of the army members” and that the situation has been contained.”
However, the SAF's official spokesman, Colonel Al Sawarmi Khalid Saad, said the violence in Kadugli is an individual act by one of the army members” and that the situation has been contained.”
The SPLM tried to halt the installment of the Southern Kordofan government after NCP Governor Ahmed Haroun took the constitutional oath before the Sudanese President, saying this was considered illegal because the law dictates such oaths are taken before the elected National Parliament instead.
According to some northern sources, a revolt among the SAF and the state police led to a fight in the south of the state when some police units refused to be dispatched to the disputed region of Abyei.
Informed sources in the police command said fighting broke out when state police forces refused to disarm rebel groups, which led to clashes between the two parties before the violence spread to Kadugli.
Listen to Marvis Birungi's reportage "Examining the role of the UN in Abyei"
The sources also attribute the fighting in Kadugli to the decision by joint forces command to separate its troops without informing the SPLA units stationed at the same location. The salaries of the SAF troops in the JIUs were paid, but not those of the SPLA.
The SAF's command in the military region asked its SPLA counterpart to leave and hand over the troops' weapons.
The fighting moved downtown, close to the home of General Lieutenant Abdul Aziz al-Hilu, the SPLM Chair of Southern Kordofan, who had lost the race for governor in last month's disputed election.
Some rocket-propelled grenades also hit the home of Governor Ahmed Haroun, as well as compounds housing the defense coordination office and the security service.
The state capital had been relatively stable after the announcement of the election results.
Military observers say the battles deal a heavy blow to the peace agreement in the weeks remaining until Southern Sudan becomes officially independent.
These battles are an outrageous breach of the CPA and the security arrangements of the Nuba Mountains Protocol.”
These battles are an outrageous breach of the CPA and the security arrangements of the Nuba Mountains Protocol,” said Major General Muhammad Al Abbas Al Ameen, and a reaction to the recent events in Abyei.”
The SPLM has 40,000 Nuba mountain peoples within its army and may use them to exert pressure on the government to lift the lid on their demand for the right of self-determination.”
Rabie Abdul Atti, an NCP leader, summarised the NCP’s position as rejecting any military presence in the north other than the SAF.” He holds the SPLM responsible for the clashes, saying that the purpose of the joint forces in the region is to maintain security, and that if the SPLA members of the joint forces are slackening, they should step aside.”
The SPLM in Southern Kordofan now claims it has information proving the northern NCP’s involvement in a plan to target the ethnic Nubian population and warns of the consequences of pursuing such an agenda.
In a press statement, Qamar Dalman, an SPLM advisor in Southern Kordofan, said events in the region are part of an NCP strategy to provoke the SPLM, terrorise civilians, and engage the tribes in a political conflict.”
Dalman said this recalled an earlier scheme begun in the 1990s to target the Nubians.
Listen also to Charlton Doki's reportage "Southern Kordofan: thousands displaced amidst ongoing fighting"
He also pointed out that the SAF and the police hadn't complied with an agreement signed in Kadugli that provided for the presence of joint forces in the area.
Kadugli Airport was the scene of a flurry of arrivals by top level defence officials and political leaders from Khartoum, including a delegation from the SPLM's leadership in the north.
SPLM sources confirm that they have a "top secret" letter from the SAF command in Southern Kordofan ordering the evacuation of the SPLA from the region.
The United Nations Mission in Sudan expressed its concern about the military escalation in the region and urged all parties to immediately cease fire and artillery, especially near its headquarters.
