| COMMUNITY |
| Message Boards Chat Feedback |
| SITE SOURCES |
| Contents Help! Search CNN Networks |
| SPECIALS |
| Quick News Almanac Video Vault News Quiz |
 |
Sudan denies blocking aid to starving south
April 30, 1998
Web posted at: 1:02 p.m. EDT (1702 GMT)In this story:
KHARTOUM, Sudan (CNN) -- A Sudanese minister has denied British charges that the Khartoum government has been blocking aid intended for thousands of people facing starvation in the south of the country.
The Sudanese newspaper Al-Rai Al-Aam on Wednesday quoted State Minister for Foreign Affairs Bishop Gabriel Roric as saying the charges were "part of an international maneuver aimed at aborting peace talks" between the government and southern rebels due to start next week.
Britain's International Development Secretary Clare Short said on Wednesday 300,000 people in southern Sudan were starving because relief agencies were unable to get food through to them.
"The problem is not lack of food supplies or money, but delay caused by the government of Sudan in permitting access," she said.
"We are ... challenging both sides -- the government of Sudan and the factions in the south -- to agree an immediate cease-fire so that the necessary supplies can be delivered urgently."
Third of a million starving people
Charities say about 350,000 people in southern Sudan have no food and cannot survive until the next harvest without aid.
The U.N. World Food Program (WFP) said Thursday that a river convoy of seven barges is bringing more than 2,000 tons of food to government and rebel-held areas of southern Sudan. The six-week trip along the White Nile started earlier this week, WFP said in a statement.
Roric blamed the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) for preventing food deliveries to the south. The rebel army has been fighting the government since 1983 for autonomy of the mainly Christian and animist region.
Rebel leader John Garang said Thursday the SPLA had released 400 prisoners of war in early April and is set to free hundreds of others. He did not give a timetable for the other releases but said the SPLA would continue to detain "dozens" of other prisoners for "legal and security" reasons.
Peace talks in Kenya between the government and the SPLA, which had been scheduled for April 30, have been postponed to May 4.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- 1 million people face famine in Sudan, Ethiopia - April 10, 1998
- Opposition slams Sudan constitution talks - March 8, 1998
- Heavy fighting erupts over key Sudanese airport - January 31, 1998
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
- The Sudan Foundation
- World Food Programme
- Norwegian People's Aid
- Sudanese National Democratic Alliance
- ArabNet - Sudan
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
|
Sound off on our message boards & chat |
|
© 1998 Cable News Network, Inc.
A Time Warner Company
All Rights Reserved.