Sudan, S. Sudan leaders meet over disputes; UN urges access for aid agencies
The Washington Post Addis Ababa, 15/07/12 - Aid agencies should have access to help internally displaced people fleeing from violence in Sudan and South Sudan, a top U.N. official said Sunday, one day after the leaders of the two nations met in a closed-door session. The U.N. official, Deputy Secretary General Jan Eliason, said in a speech to the African Union on Sunday that hundreds of thousands of people in Sudan and South Sudan are in grave need of assistance. Aid agencies should have the funds and access they need to assist internally displaced persons and refugees, he said. Aid groups have decried the decision by Sudan to block access to its southern states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile, where thousands of refugees are fleeing war between Sudan’s army and rebels fighting the government. The AU-led talks so far unsuccessfully tried to ease fragile security issues between the two states, and resolve the status of the contested oil-rich region Abyei. The talks were squashed in April when the two sides came close to a war after deadly border conflicts near the Heglig region. Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the two countries’ negotiating teams resumed talks on Thursday in Ethiopia’s regional city Bahir Dar. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/SouthSudanKob?hl=en-US.
