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KHARTOUM - 29 Jul 2013

Misseriya leader warns against ‘unilateral’ Abyei referendum

A traditional leader of the Misseriya tribe, Abdel-Rasoul al-Nur, has warned the Sudanese government of the danger of accepting ‘unilateral’ conduct of the referendum in the Abyei area.

The Misseriya tribe had rejected a recommendation by the Abyei Youth Committee supporting the conduct of the referendum in next October.

 The leader says “this move will create disastrous consequences in the area.”

He reaffirmed that the Abyei area belongs to Sudanese territory.  In a press release he requested the Government of Sudan not to respond to the conditions of South Sudan in regards to the conduct of the referendum in the area.

The traditional leader stressed that in the event of any compromise by the Government of Sudan, the Misseriya tribe will raise their voices louder than the government that has been adopting their point of view.

Abdel-Rasoul said he expected that the Government of Sudan would not grant more concessions to Juba. He criticized the government of South Sudan’s endeavour to conduct the referendum in October without the consent of Khartoum.