Sudan president threatens to oust South government

MOHAMED SAEED

Associated Press= KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) — Sudan‘s president threatened Wednesday to topple his rival government to the south, harsh words that could escalate the conflict between the two nations as they intensify clashes over their shared border.

As the international community pushed for a peaceful solution to the dispute, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir vowed to “liberate” the people of South Sudan, saying it was his country’s duty to them.

South Sudan broke away from Sudan in July after decades of civil war, creating the world’s newest country. But the two never agreed on how to share the oil wealth found in the region between the countries, and the border was never fully demarcated.

Fighting has intensified in the last several weeks amid fears the two sides could return to an all-out war. On Tuesday, soldiers from Sudan and South Sudan clashed at a river dividing their two countries, leaving 22 dead as fighting spread to a new area of the tense border.

The river battle comes amid wider violence along the shared border around the oil town of Heglig, which South Sudan troops took control of last week. Sudanese aircraft have been bombing South Sudan‘s Unity State as a part of that fighting.

Speaking

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/10201799

Tags: African Union, Al Bashir, Bashir, Security Council, south sudan, Sudan

Category: Khartoum