AL Welcomes Sudan's Acceptance of Egyptian-Libyan Peace Plan

The Arab League (AL) Monday welcomed the acceptance of an Egyptian-Libyan peace initiative by concerned parties in Sudan, terming the move as "positive."

The AL secretariat stressed in a statement that it is important to achieve peace and stability in the civil war-stricken Sudan in order to maintain its unity and territorial integrity, Egypt's state-run Middle East News Agency reported.

The AL spoke highly of the "positive steps" initiated by the Sudanese government to push forward peace, calling on the world community to support the efforts of the Sudanese government to realize stability and comprehensive peace in Sudan, the report said.

The Egyptian-Libyan peace plan put forward two weeks ago calls for resuming the peace process, forming a transitional cabinet of all political forces, specifying date and arrangements of new general elections, and an immediate cessation of all forms of hostilities in a bid to achieve national reconciliation in Sudan.

Hopes for ending the 18-year civil war in Sudan have been raised after both the Sudanese government and the opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA) offered their acceptance of the new Egyptian-Libyan peace plan last week.

NDA has acted as an umbrella organization of the rebel Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in the south and northern opposition.

In l999, Egypt and Libya launched an initiative that called for a national conference to be attended by the Sudanese government, all opposition groups in the north and the rebel Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in the south, to put an end to the protracted civil war.

The Sudanese government forces have been fighting with the SPLA since 1983, who has been struggling for greater autonomy for the predominantly Christian and animist south.

The SPLA has recently captured a number of key towns in the southern Bahr el-Ghazal region. In the light of SPLA's continued attacks, the Sudanese government has warned that the government forces will resume air strikes in the south, a move suspended in May.






People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/