The Sudanese government and the largest of the Darfur rebel groups signed a hard-fought peace agreement on Friday intended to end three years of misery and bloodshed in Dafur. But two much smaller rebel groups angrily demurred, leaving open the possibility that they would threaten the accord. One of them is headed by Abdul Wahad al-Nur, reports the New York Times.



More than two dozen heads of state and other leaders from Africa, Europe and the Middle East who had gathered at the talks in Abuja (Nigeria) applied intense pressure on the rebels to compromise.Under the terms of the accord, a cease-fire is to take effect in seven days. Government militias and rebel forces are to disarm and withdraw behind cease-fire lines. Over the coming months, the Sudanese government is to establish a compensation fund for victims of the carnage, which has claimed more than 200,000 lives and displaced millions from their homes. This summer, there is to be an international conference to raise money for Darfur reconstruction. Beyond that, about 5,000 rebel soldiers are to join the Sudanese Army and the police, and rebel leaders can join the government - including the post of senior assistant to the president, the fourth-highest position.



Robert B. Zoellick, the American deputy secretary of state who helped drive the parties to this partial victory, cautiously applauded the agreement as he acknowledged that the failure to win unified support “is a reality and poses dangers.” He called Nur “mercurial, to be polite.” But he also noted that Nur’s movement “is dominant in some areas” of Darfur. Nur represents the Fur, the largest tribe in Darfur, a region whose name means “land of the Fur.” This leaves the preponderance of Darfurian political sentiment unrepresented at the table, meaning stakeholders in implementing any agreement will be few and far between.



The third rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement, an Islamist group, was not present for the signing. It has a small but committed following, and, Zoellick bitterly described its leaders as “dismissive of the need for peace.” Some of its leaders live in Europe, but the African Union estimates that it has about 500 or 600 fighters in Darfur. The movement has ties to Hassan al-Turabi, the religious hard-liner who invited Osama bin Laden to Sudan. It sought the most radical changes to the peace agreement, most of which were not accepted. Both of the smaller groups have the ability to be spoilers by continuing to fight. But neither group has said specifically what it intends to do now.



“There is still a lot of mistrust and fear, still a lot of danger on the ground,” Zoellick said.



The conflict in Darfur began in early 2003, when rebels, frustrated by Arab dominance in their region, attacked a government outpost. The government responded by arming local Arab militias, which have fought the rebels using brutal tactics, including rape, pillage and murder, according to human rights groups and the State Department., With the accord, however, the rebels gain greater representation, while the government seeks to end a war that has stained its international reputation.



In northern Darfur in recent days, the two factions of the Sudan Liberation Army have been fighting each other, battling for territorial dominance ahead of a peace deal, diplomats and aid officials said. There are signs of behaviour not unlike the janjaweed, like using rape as a weapon in some cases in these clashes.”