Colonel al-Sawarmi Khalid Saad says South Sudan forces are occupying 'six areas inside Sudan' The war of words between Sudan and South Sudan took a new twist on Monday as the Sudanese army accused the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) from South Sudan of "non-committal to their immediate and unconditioned withdrawal from Sudanese territories."
Spokesperson of the Sudanese army, Colonel al-Sawarmi Khalid Saad, said: "South Sudan forces are still operating at six posts within Sudan's borders, a matter that poses a flagrant violation to implementation of the requirements for the road-map of the African Peace and Security Council, and UN Security Council resolution (2046) and all the agreements signed by the two states, especially the security agreements which were signed on September 27, 2012 in Addis Ababa, and the agreement on timetables that was presented by the commander of United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and the joint political and security mechanism."
"The non-commitment of South Sudan to the withdrawal was proved by media statements of the spokesman of SPLA and his repeated affirmation that the South Sudanese army has not withdrawn from the border area with Sudan," he added.
He said that this rejection of South Sudan to withdraw its forces will have a "severe impact" on the joint interests of the two nations, and will negatively affect the security and stability at the border between the countries, "taking into consideration the fact that the Republic of Sudan has affirmed, through its letter to the commander of UNISFA, that Sudan has no military forces located to the south of the zero line in the secure and disarmed area."
He affirmed that South Sudan is still occupying six areas inside Sudan, "a matter which proves the falseness of its report to the Security Council that it has fully withdrawn."
He said that General James Jay [leader of a rebel South Sudanese group] is still being detained in Khartoum as part of the commitment to halt support for any hostile groups to either of the two governments, which was signed by presidents of both countries.
Earlier, SPLA accused its northern neighbours of killing one of its soldiers in the Upper Nile state, in an alleged ground and airstrike.