Sudan's Bashir Threatens To Pursue Rebels İnto S. Sudan

President Omar al-Bashir on Tuesday warned against providing support to rebel groups active in Sudan, threatening to pursue such groups into South Sudanese territory.



"Sudan has been patient with the country of the south [South Sudan] and gave them their own country, but they responded with acts of conspiracy and treachery," al-Bashir said in a speech delivered in the western Darfur province.



The president's assertions come after two days of intense clashes between rebels and the Sudanese army, which claims that rebel forces snuck into the country from South Sudan, where they had received training.



"We will extend them [South Sudan] the opportunity to make the right decision and disarm all movements," al-Bashir said.



"Otherwise," he added, "[Sudan's] Rapid Support Forces will undertake the mission of disarming them."



The Rapid Support Forces are paramilitary groups associated with Sudan's intelligence agency, which provide support to the army in its war against rebels in Darfur.



Al-Bashir also threatened to pursue rebels into South Sudanese territory, saying his country had the right "to defend itself against any agent or rebel – even if they're in [the South Sudanese cities of] Juba, Raga or Aweil."



The Sudanese president went on to accuse certain western countries of supporting the rebels and providing them with training.



Earlier Tuesday, the government of South Sudan denied al-Bashir's allegations.



Since 2003, Darfur has been the scene of a ferocious war between the Sudanese government and three rebel movements. The conflict has left some 300,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced, according to UN figures.



In 2009, the Darfur conflict prompted the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant for al-Bashir amid allegations that Sudanese troops and allied militias had committed atrocities in the troubled region.



South Sudan – which seceded from Sudan in 2011 – has been shaken by violence since late 2013, when President Salva Kiir accused his sacked vice-president of leading a failed coup attempt against his regime.



Tens of thousands have reportedly been killed in subsequent violence, with some 2 million uprooted from their homes and 2.5 million at risk of starvation, according to recent UN estimates.



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