Military buildup in contested Abyei region threatens peace in Sudan

Military buildup in contested Abyei region threatens peace in Sudan
The Abyei region was accorded special administrative status in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2004.
Military buildup in contested Abyei region threatens peace in Sudan
The Abyei region was accorded special administrative status in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2004.

Military buildup in contested Abyei region threatens peace in Sudan

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Long a point of contention in peace negotiations, Sudan’s Abyei region sits along the disputed border between the North and South. Both sides lay claim to the sparsely populated area.  Responding to recent ambushes from Southern forces, the Northern Sudanese army occupied the main town of Abyei last Saturday.  The tense military standoff comes less than two months before South Sudan plans to celebrate its independence from the North and after decades of civil war.  The Enough Project has been filing reports on the military build-up along the disputed border for months.  John Bradshaw is the executive director of the Enough Project.  He fills us in on what’s been happening in Abyei.