Peace talks adjourned

The Sudan peace talks, which have been underway in the Kenyan town of Nanyuki, were adjourned on Saturday until 10 September to give the negotiating teams time for further consultations. According to a statement issued by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) - which is facilitating the talks - delegations from the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) had discussed procedural and outstanding matters before the adjournment. The talks resumed on 10 August after stalling in July when the Sudanese government team rejected a draft power-sharing document that had been signed during previous negotiations in the Kenyan town of Nakuru. "After a series of engagements through consultations and direct talks, the parties asked for an adjournment in order to consult further with their principals," the IGAD statement said. Sudan's deputy ambassador to Kenya Muhammad Ahmad Dirdeiry told IRIN on Monday that the parties engaged "very constructively" during the 10-23 August session of talks - the seventh since the negotiations began in Kenya in July 2002. He said that both parties had agreed to the adjournment. SPLM/A spokesman Samson Kwaje said the Sudanese government had requested time for consultations. "We agreed to the request, we hope to resume in 10 days' time," he told IRIN. The Sudanese civil war began 20 years ago when the southern-based SPLM/A took up arms to fight for self-determination.