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U.S. voices concerns over violence in Sudan’s Abyei

06 May 2011 00:11 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The U.S. State Department on Thursday voiced concerns over the "alarming situation" in the Abyei region of Sudan where more than ten people were killed in a fresh round of violence, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"Recent actions by both parties to the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement run counter to President Bashir and President Kiir’s agreement to resolve the situation peacefully through negotiation and with the assistance of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel," said States Department spokesman Mark Toner.

He said the introduction of armed forces into Abyei by both sides violates the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

"We welcome the May 5th agreement by the National Congress Party and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement to immediately implement the Kaduli agreements and to withdraw illegal troops from Abyei and urge both sides to act expeditiously to carry out this agreement," he said.

Toner also urged both sides to avoid further escalation that could endanger the "peaceful atmosphere" of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and ultimately make resolution of the Abyei issue "more difficult."

The United Nations has found 14 bodies in Sudan’s oil-rich Abyei region, the apparent victims of the latest round of clashes in this disputed region of central Sudan, UN officials said on Tuesday.

Tensions have been high in Abyei for months as the area remains in dispute between the north and the south, which will formally separate in July.

A referendum on the future status of Abyei was supposed to be held in January, but never took place amid disputes over voter eligibility.