Sudan has rejected calls to reverse its decision to expel 13 foreign aid groups from the country, despite pressure from the US and United Nations Security Council members."The decision of the government of Sudan is a legitimate sovereign decision which we will never reverse," Mohamed Yousif Ibrahim Abdelmannan, Sudan's envoy to the UN, told the council on Friday. "This should not be a issue for discussion," he said. Sudan ordered the aid agencies out of Darfur after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Omar al-Bashir, the Sudanese president, earlier this month, over alleged war crimes in the western region. Sudan, which does not recognise the ICC, rejects the charge. Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the UN, told the 15-nation council on Friday: "We urge the international community to press the government of Sudan to reverse its expulsion edict and to ensure it does nothing to worsen an already grave situation. "President Bashir created this crisis," she said. "He should rectify it immediately." The UK, Austria, Uganda and several other countries have appealed to Khartoum to rethink its position.Sudan has maintained its position despite a rebel group in Darfur saying it was pulling out of peace talks with the Sudanese government after the aid agencies were expelled.
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Khalil Ibrahim, the leader of the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem), told the Reuters news agency by telephone on Friday: "The movement cannot negotiate with the government of al-Bashir." Jem signed a deal with the Sudanese government after talks in the Qatari capital, Doha, last month, under which both sides agreed to undertake "good faith" measures. "There was supposed to be a conference [in Doha] after three weeks but we will not go," Ibrahim said. He said the government must allow the expelled aid agencies back into Darfur and free Jem prisoners before talks could resume.
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