Region | Sudan
New Darfur mediator begins peace process
Darfur's new chief mediator Djibril Bassole begins the peace process by arriving in Sudan on Sunday.
- Agencies
- Published: 16:09 July 20, 2008
Khartoum: Darfur's new chief mediator Djibril Bassole begins the peace process by arriving in Sudan on Sunday.
Bassole faces numerous obstacles to securing peace. His task becomes even more complicated considering the fact that he speaks neither Arabic nor English, the languages understood by the negotiators.
Bassole will be based in Darfur's main town El Fasher. His predecessors UN envoy Jan Eliasson and his African Union counterpart Salim Ahmed Salim failed to arrange meaningful peace talks, and ongoing violence in Darfur heightened.
International experts estimate almost 200,000 have died since mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms in early 2003, accusing central government of neglect.
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