North Sudan Captures Southern Oil Region

US Condemns Khartoum for Offensive in Region Claimed by South

VoA News: The United States has condemned the Sudanese government for staging a military offensive to take control of an oil-rich town claimed by the autonomous southern region of Sudan.

The White House issued a statement Saturday condemning the Sudanese army's operations in Abyei and a Sudanese presidential decree dissolving the town's administration.

The U.S. statement accuses Sudan's Khartoum-based central government of “blatant violations” of a peace agreement with the autonomous south and undermining pledges by both sides to avoid a return to civil war. Khartoum and the south have been unable to agree on who should control Abyei after the south secedes on July 9 as part of that peace deal.

Sudanese state television said the northern Sudanese army captured Abyei earlier Saturday in a battle with southern Sudanese forces. U.N. officials in Khartoum confirmed the claim and said at least 10 northern Sudanese tanks were patrolling the town. U.N. spokesman Kouider Zerrouk also said a mortar landed in the U.N.'s compound near Abyei, but caused no casualties.

Southern Sudanese army spokesman Philip Aguer said northern warplanes bombed Abyei for a second day on Saturday, hitting four villages. He gave no information about casualties.

The White House called on the northern Sudanese army to “immediately cease all offensive operations” in Abyei and withdraw its forces. It said failure to do so “could set back the process of normalizing relations between Sudan and the United States and inhibit the international community's ability to move forward on issues critical to Sudan's future.”

The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Sudan also called for an “immediate cessation of hostilities” in Abyei and urged the forces of the north and south to protect civilians.

A U.N. Security Council delegation was due in Khartoum Saturday for talks with Sudanese officials about the situation in Abyei.

The armies of the north and south previously had agreed to conduct joint patrols in Abyei. But, fighting erupted in the region Thursday, when a northern army convoy accompanied by U.N. peacekeepers came under attack. Both armies accused each other of firing first.

The White House accused southern Sudanese forces of attacking the convoy and deplored the incident. But, it said the response of the northern Sudanese army is “disproportionate and irresponsible.”

The Obama administration urged Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and southern Sudanese President Salva Kiir to meet “immediately” and agree on a way to restore calm, uphold their peace agreement and recommit to a negotiated political settlement on Abyei's status.

A referendum on whether Abyei should be a part of the north or the south had been scheduled for last January, but did not take place because the two sides could not agree on who was eligible to vote.