Sudan and Darfur rebel group sign cease-fire

[March 18, 2010]  DOHA, Qatar (AP) -- Sudan's government and a collection of Darfur rebel groups have signed a cease-fire, opening the way for political negotiations ahead of a full peace agreement.

Government representative Ghazi Salah Eddin Atabani and rebel leader Al-Tijani Al-Sissi signed the truce Thursday in Doha, Qatar.

Al-Sissi's Liberation and Justice Movement is an umbrella organization that includes several small Darfur rebel groups that recently united to negotiate with the government.

Last month, Sudan's government signed a similar truce in Doha with Darfur's most powerful rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement.

The government refused JEM's demand that other rebel groups join the reconciliation process under its umbrella.

[Associated Press]

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