Hundreds of Darfur rebels near Sudan's capital, clashing with security forces

The Associated Press

CRAWFORD, Texas - The Bush administration said Saturday it was "very concerned" about the outbreak of violence in Sudan between Darfur rebels and government troops and urged both sides to exercise restraint.

"We are very concerned about the situation," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said in Texas where President Bush was attending his daughter's wedding.

"We would urge that both sides cease hostilities, whether it is the rebel group or any response from the government. We want to see a calm and order restored."

Hundreds of Darfur rebels reached the outskirts of Sudan's capital Saturday for the first time and clashed with security forces, rebel and government officials said.

Sudan's army deployed on the streets of Khartoum, putting up checkpoints and imposing an overnight curfew. An Interior Ministry statement said the curfew was in effect while the government was "dealing with the infiltrators."

State television showed footage of burning trucks and other cars pockmarked by bullets. At least one body was sprawled in a dusty street, covered in cloth, and another victim was slumped in the cab of a jeep nearby. Men in traditional white robes crowded around the wreckage.

Warnings and targets
The clashes come after days of government warnings that the Justice and Equality Movement, one of Darfur's main rebel movements, was going to target Khartoum. Saturday's attack is the closest the rebels have ever gotten to the capital.

After nightfall, Interior Minister Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamed told state TV that government troops had successfully expelled the rebels from the city but were still searching for possible remnants of the force.

The government channel also reported that a rebel leader and one of his aides were killed in the clashes, but JEM could not immediately be reached for comment. Hamed said many rebels were detained and about 40 vehicles were destroyed or confiscated.

State TV also showed pictures of soldiers seizing what appeared to be rebel jeeps mounted with rocket or mortar launchers and ammunition. Government troops drove the vehicles down empty streets, waving their weapons to signal victory and saluting colleagues.

Extending the curfew
The government later extended the curfew in Khartoum, saying some rebel members have shed their uniforms and are hiding among civilians. Security forces ordered residents to clear the streets and armored vehicles were patrolling the capital. Bridges to Omdurman, Khartoum's twin city, have been cut by government forces.

In a statement, the military said that "elements" of JEM had infiltrated northern Omdurman. The statement said the Sudanese forces had stopped the main advance of the JEM forces in neighboring province Kordofan, but that a few had reached Khartoum.

JEM leader Abu Zumam, however, told The Associated Press by telephone that hundreds of his fighters had reached Omdurman and engaged government forces. Gunfire could be heard in the background.

"We entered Omdurman by force," he said, adding that his army of some 700 vehicles planned to take over the state radio building in the city.

JEM once confined its activities to Darfur, where local ethnic African rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated central government in 2003 complaining of discrimination.

In the last year however, JEM has widened its activities to include Kordofan, the vast province between the capital and Darfur.

Death toll in Darfur
More than 200,000 have died in Sudan's Darfur region and 2.5 million have fled to refugee camps since 2003. Sudan denies backing the janjaweed militia of Arab nomads accused of the worst atrocities in the conflict.

On Saturday, the country's interior minister accused neighboring Chad of supporting what he called "mercenaries" who aimed to hit Khartoum. "Chad wants to hit Sudan in the heart," Hamed told state TV.

Sudan also accused Chad of attacking a border area to provide cover for JEM's attacks against the capital.

The Sudanese army spokesman, Brigadier General Osman al-Agbash said Chadian forces on Friday attacked the border and were repelled with "heavy losses on the attacking Chadian forces," he said according to the official state news agency SUNA.

Strained relations
Relations between the two countries, which share a long arid border region home to numerous armed groups have long been strained.

Chad has accused Sudanese authorities of arming rebels who launched a failed assault February on the Chadian capital, N'Djamena. The rebels reached the gate of the presidential palace, but fled toward Sudan after Chad's army repelled them in fighting that left hundreds dead.

Sudan, meanwhile, has repeatedly accused Chad of supporting the rebellion in Darfur.

Though the two countries signed peace agreement in March promising to prevent armed groups from operating along each other's shared borders, the accusations have continued unabated.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24556085/