Bashir Wednesday vowed to “liberate” South Sudan from its ruling party, a sharp escalation of rhetoric after fierce border clashes that edged the East African neighbors closer to all-out war. There has been growing alarm over the worst violence seen since South Sudan split away from Sudan last year. Global powers have urged the two sides to end the fighting. South Sudan seized the contested oil-producing Heglig region last week, prompting Sudan's parliament to brand its former civil war foe an “enemy” and to call for a swift recapture of the flat savanna region. In a fiery speech to members of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP), Bashir repeatedly referred to the South's ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) as “insects,” a play on their Arabic name. “Our main goal is liberation of the southern citizens from the SPLM,” Bashir said. “This is our responsibility before the Southern people.” Shortly after the speech, South Sudan's army (SPLA) spokesman said the South's forces had repulsed “a very big attack” on Heglig, but there was no immediate comment on this from Sudan or independent confirmation of the claim. Earlier, Sudan and South Sudan accused one another of launching attacks on a new front. South Sudan's army said a total of 22 soldiers died in the fighting. Sudan said it had repulsed an attack on Tuesday by South Sudan's armed forces near the Bahr Al-Arab river, known as the Kiir River in the south. “Limited forces from the SPLA attacked the area to divert the efforts of the armed forces working to liberate the Heglig region,” the state-linked Sudanese Media Center quoted a military official as saying.
