South Sudan ceasefire talks open in Ethiopia
Iran Press TV
Fri Jan 3, 2014 10:43AM GMT
The warring parties in South Sudan have opened ceasefire negotiations to resolve the deadly conflict in the violence-hit African country.
The South Sudanese government and rebel negotiating teams are meeting at a hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Friday.
The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry has also confirmed the commencement of the talks, adding that the regional bloc that is helping broker an agreement, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), "was committed to support in any way possible."
"We are participating in talks because we want peace for our people even though the rebel groups have not accepted a cessation of hostilities," South Sudan's government said in a statement late Thursday.
Violence broke out in South Sudan on December 15, 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused Riek Machar, a former vice president, of attempting to stage a coup.
Fighting has ever since has spread across the oil-rich but impoverished country, with the rebels capturing several areas.
Top UN aid official in South Sudan Toby Lanzer warned on Friday that government troops and rebels must protect civilians and aid workers. "All parties to the conflict have a responsibility to make sure that civilians are spared from the fighting."
"We call on all parties to facilitate aid agencies' access to civilians, and to protect and respect humanitarian activities," the UN humanitarian coordinator added.
Lanzer further said that almost three weeks of violence has forced around 200,000 people to leave their homes and "affected many hundreds of thousands of people indirectly."
MR/HSN/HMV
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
