September 12, 2011 (KHARTOUM) — During a meeting with a delegation of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement, US envoy for Sudan called on Darfur rebels to unit their efforts for a comprehensive and inclusive peace process.

A fighter of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) stands guard (file/AFP)

Princeton Lyman, met yesterday in the Ugandan capital with two leading members of the rebel group, JEM vice president Ahmed Adam Bakheit and secretary for presidential affairs Mansour Arbab.

The US official called on JEM rebels to reunite their positions with the other rebel groups in order to reach an inclusive solution for Darfur problem. He also said a negotiated settlement is better than a military solution in Sudan.

Lyman was reacting to the call by rebel groups to overthrow the regime of the national Congress Party in Khartoum. Recently JEM, SPLM North, and two factions of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdel Wahid al-Nur and Minni Minnawi agreed to work together to overthrow the government.

However JEM has failed to agree with the three groups on the secular state and called to opt for the citizenship state. The parties are still discussing to find out a common ground.

JEM spokesperson Gibreel Adam Bilal said the delegation reiterated its rejection to partial agreements and called for a comprehensive peace deal addressing the root causes of the conflict.

The rebels also underlined, during the meeting, the efforts done by their group to reunite the armed opposition groups in Darfur and the rest of the Sudan. They further said that their group is committed to the idea of citizenship state.

JEM leader Khalil Ibrahim returned last week to Darfur after one year of forced residence in Libya despite the deployment of Sudanese troops along the joint border to bar his entry to the country.

Khalil Ibrahim told Sudan Tribune that he is willing to sign peace agreement responding to the demands of Darfur people for a just and lasting settlement. He also said Chadian president Idris Deby can play a decisive role in such process.

JEM refused to ink the Doha Darfur Peace Document (DDPD) adopted last May and asks to hold direct talks on the basis of this framework document. But Khartoum refuses the demand saying they have three months to join the Doha deal.

Lyman who participated in a follow-up committee for the implementation of the DDPD held recently in Doha, urged Khartoum to not close the door for talks with the rebel groups.

He also said they are preparing a conference on Darfur in Washington by the end of this month where the parties have to expose their points of view and to find ways to resume the negotiations within the Doha framework text.

(ST)