A prominent Sudanese rebel group has released 127 prisoners it had captured in fighting with government forces, most of them soldiers, the military said on Sunday. The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) had captured the prisoners in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states, where the group has been fighting Sudanese government forces for years.

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The released prisoners include 109 soldiers and 18 civilians, army spokesman Brigadier Ahmed Khalifa al-Shami said in a statement.

“The Sudanese army recognises this as a positive step towards achieving peace in the country,” he said.

Ethnic minority rebels in Blue Nile and South Kordofan have been fighting government forces since 2011, accusing President Omar al-Bashir’s Arab-dominated government of politically and economically marginalising the two regions.

Fighting in the two areas and in Darfur have left tens of thousands of people dead and displaced millions.

Khartoum announced a unilateral ceasefire in June 2016 in all three conflict zones, which it extended by six months in January.

UN officials say that for years Blue Nile and South Kordofan have been no-go areas for aid officials, leaving thousands of people without access to humanitarian relief. </s> A Sudanese rebel group has freed 127 people it had captured in fighting with government forces, according to the country's army.

Those released by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) included 109 soldiers and 18 civilians, Brigadier Ahmed Khalifa al-Shami, the army spokesman, said in a statement on Sunday.

"The Sudanese army recognises this as a positive step towards achieving peace in the country."

The SPLM-N had captured the prisoners in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states, where the group has been fighting Sudanese government forces for years.

It was not clear how long the prisoners spent in captivity.

In 2011, South Sudan gained independence from Sudan following a 2005 peace deal that ended Africa's longest-running civil war.

Excluded from deal

After a referendum, in which an overwhelming majority of South Sudanese voted to secede, Africa's newest country came into being, the first since Eritrea split from Ethiopia in 1993.

But South Kordofan and Blue Nile, whose residents predominantly wanted to become citizens of the new nation, were excluded from the deal.

The SPLM-N, the northern affiliate of SPLM in South Sudan, consequently took up arms against the Sudanese government of President Omar al-Bashir, and fighting has continued on and off ever since.

Fighting in the two areas, and in Darfur, have left tens of thousands of people dead and displaced millions.

Khartoum announced a unilateral ceasefire in June 2016 in all three conflict zones, which it extended by six months in January.

UN says that for years Blue Nile and South Kordofan have been no-go areas for aid officials, leaving thousands of people without access to humanitarian relief. </s> Sudanese prisoners of war queue to board an International Committee of the Red Cross plane to Uganda after being released by the rebels in South Kordofan. MOHAMMED AMIN | NATION MEDIA GROUP

Sudanese rebels Saturday announced the release of more than 130 government soldiers captured in the battles in South Kordofan.

In a press release extended to the Africa Review, the rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/ Northern sector (SPLM-N) confirmed that the prisoners of war had been received by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and transported by a helicopter belonging to the international organisation.

SPLM-N further pointed out that South Sudan and Uganda had facilitated the transportation of the war prisoners.

"SPLM-N has handed over more than 130 prisoners of war to the Red Cross in line with the goodwill announced by the SPLM-N leadership,’’ the statement read.

"They have been transported today to Uganda through South Sudan and they will be handed over to Sudan,’’ it added.

The statement said Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni had appreciated the gesture and the facilitation by Sudan and South Sudan to enable ICRC to transport the war prisoners to Uganda through the international corridors.

A handing over proposed by SPLM-N last year did not materialise.

SPLM-N last year announced an initiative to hand over government prisoners of war, but the two sides have traded accusations over the failure of the process.

The Sudanese army did not immediately react to the rebels’ unilateral move.

However, the rebels have repeatedly decried the ceasefire violations by the government forces.

The warring parties have failed to achieve any breakthrough in the negotiations in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, under the mediation of the African Union. </s> Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) rebels have released Kenyans they detained as retaliation after Nairobi handed over their spokesman James Gatdet Dak to the Juba government.

“Following the order of our commander in chief and leader Dr Riek Machar, we have released all Kenyan nationals in our territory. They are now free to move within our territory or even go to another country,” said Goanar Gordon Yien, an SPLM-IO official in Ethiopia.

“Even though the delivery of our spokesperson to the Juba government by the Kenyan government is against the Geneva Convention, our chairman has ordered the release of all civilian Kenyans detained following that incident.

"If the Kenya government did not want our spokesman in its territory, it could have sent him to our headquarters – Pagak, instead of sending him to the Juba regime which is known for torturing and killing civilians. Or if they found him doing harm, the Kenyan government could also have [charged him in] their own court,” he said.

Mr Yien said sources had informed the SPLM-IO that Dak was still alive and urged the international community to put pressure on the Juba government to release him.

“I hope what the Kenyan government has done to our spokesperson will not happen to another person again. We value the positive role the Kenyan government has been playing to end the conflict in South Sudan and hope that it continues to do so,” he said by phone.
The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North releases 127 prisoners from captivity, mostly troops of the Sudanese military.