Sudan leaders to meet on border conflict

The presidents of north and south Sudan are to meet in Addis Ababa today to discuss the crises in the border regions of Abyei and South Kordofan, China's envoy for African affairs said yesterday.
"There will a meeting tomorrow between President (Omar al-) Bashir and his Vice President Salva Kiir in Addis Ababa to discuss the issues of Abyei and South Kordofan," Liu Guijin said after meeting Bashir in Khartoum yesterday.
SUNA state news agency said the talks would also be attended by Ethiopian PM Meles Zenawi and former South African president Thabo Mbeki, who heads an African Union team trying to resolve outstanding issues between north and south ahead of southern independence on July 9.
Heavy clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and northern members of the former southern rebel army have raged all week across South Kordofan, the north's only oil producing state, with intense fighting in and around the state capital Kadugli.
The White House urged Sudan on Friday to "immediately" halt the escalation of "reprehensible" violence on southern army positions less than a month before the south's independence.
"The United States condemns reported acts of violence in Southern Kordofan that target individuals based on their ethnicity and political affiliation," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in calling for a ceasefire.