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KHARTOUM - An agreement to hold renewed talks among all parties to Darfur's conflict brings a historic opportunity to end fighting which has killed 200,000, the UN humanitarian chief said yesterday.
"We have now a historic moment of opportunity as in Addis Ababa ... we saw an agreement come out for a renewed political effort to settle this man-made disaster," UN humanitarian coordinator Jan Egeland told reporters in Khartoum.
A meeting in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Friday agreed that a May peace deal signed by only one of three rebel factions was inadequate and a new process should be activated under joint leadership of the UN and African Union (AU).
The Sudan government and the rebel group which signed the May deal -- a faction of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) -- have so far refused any changes to the accord.
Egeland said there was also agreement in Addis on an effective force to protect civilians, which an African Union force has failed to do, citing lack of equipment and a weak mandate.
"(We have) an effort to have for the first time a credible force on the ground that could protect the civilian population and protect the humanitarian population," he said.
The meeting was attended by senior officials from around the world, including from the AU, European Union, Arab League and the Security Council.
A meeting of all the parties to the conflict should be arranged in the coming weeks, a statement released after the Addis meeting said.
But analysts were more sceptical. "Not very much has been actually agreed as yet -- all the key questions in terms of forces, mandate and participation of UN troops remain unclear," said Dave Mozersky of the think tank International Crisis Group. "It doesn't sound like the major breakthrough everyone was hoping for."
The Addis communique underlined that all future peace initiatives with rebels who had not signed the May deal should be unified under joint AU/UN mediation.
In the Libyan capital Tripoli, Sudanese Culture, Youth and Sports Minister Mohamed Yusif Abdallah signed an agreement with several SLA commanders aimed at bringing peace to Darfur.
The accord, described by participants at the Libyan-hosted signing as an additional political protocol to the May accord, increases to US$100 million ($150.4 million) from US$30 million the amount of money to be set aside for compensation to war victims.
The AU, which has a force of monitors and troops in Darfur, on Saturday condemned government bombing of rebel areas, which they said took a "heavy toll on the civilian population".
In a statement the AU said Sudan had attacked the Bir Mazza area with militia on November 15-16, calling it a "flagrant violation" of the May accord.
UN chief Kofi Annan said on Friday Sudan had agreed in principle to a joint UN-AU force for Darfur, although analysts say that was still in doubt.
The Addis communique said: "A hybrid operation ... is also agreed in principle pending clarification on the size of the force." The United Nations wants 20,000 police and troops whereas Sudan wants around 11-12,000.
Sudan has in the past rejected the idea of deploying UN troops in Darfur, likening it to a Western attempt at colonisation. Critics say it fears UN troops would be used to arrest officials who could be indicted for war crimes.
Sudan's Foreign Minister Lam Akol denied agreement had been reached on such a force. "A hybrid operation was agreed not a hybrid force," state news agency SUNA quoted him as saying on Saturday. The communique said: "The Sudanese delegation further requested that they be given time to consult on the appointment of the ... force commander."
Mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms in early 2003 accusing Sudan's government of marginalising the remote west. Khartoum mobilised militias to quell the revolt. Those militias stand accused of atrocities against civilians being investigated by the International Criminal Court.
Washington calls the rape, murder and pillage in Darfur genocide, a charge Khartoum rejects.
- REUTERS
