U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on all the parties at the Inter-Sudanese peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria to “redouble their efforts” in reaching agreement to end the suffering and destruction in Darfur, U.N. spokesman Stephen Dujarric said Monday. “The situation in Darfur continues to be dire,” Dujarric told reporters. “The clear solution is for the parties to seize this historic opportunity to achieve peace and begin the task of recovery and reconstruction.” The African Union (AU), which is presiding over the talks, gave all parties until April 30 to come to some sort of conclusion. Although the Sudanese government accepted the peace agreement on Sunday, two of Darfur's three main rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), objected to the text at the last minute. The parties now have 48 hours to come to a peaceful conclusion of the talks.
