\n President Omar al-Bashir launched talks in Khartoum Saturday on Sudan's ailing economy and the insurgencies in its border regions, despite a boycott by mainstream opposition and rebel groups.\n<\/p>\n
\n Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, announced the dialogue in January 2014 but spent more than a year making preparations and negotiating conditions with opposition groups.\n<\/p>\n
\n Most groups boycotted Saturday's conference, calling instead for a meeting abroad to agree on terms for talks, but Bashir said they could still join.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"We have not and will not close the door to them,\" he said at the conference's opening session.\n<\/p>\n
\n Bashir also said he could declare a permanent ceasefire with rebels battling him in the western Darfur region and in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"We announce our wish -- if the other side shows a credible commitment -- to have a permanent ceasefire,\" he said.\n<\/p>\n
\n Last month, Bashir issued a decree declaring a two-month ceasefire and pardoning any rebel leaders who attend the talks.\n<\/p>\n
\n But the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, which has been battling government forces in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, and the main Darfur rebel groups did not respond.\n<\/p>\n
\n The SPLM-N has said the military launched air raids on South Kordofan after the ceasefire was announced.\n<\/p>\n
\n Saturday's opening was attended by Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi as well and dozens of smaller political parties, many allied to Bashir's ruling National Congress Party.\n<\/p>\n
\n Several small rebel factions from Darfur also attended the opening.\n<\/p>\n
\n The talks are aimed at finding a solution to the country's ailing economy and the conflicts in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan.\n<\/p>\n
\n Sudan has been under a US trade embargo since 1997 over charges of rights abuses and backing militant Islamist groups.\n<\/p>\n
\n Its economy suffered a further blow when South Sudan became independent in 2011, taking with it three-quarters of the country's oil production.\n<\/p>\n
\n Darfur has also been mired in violence since 2003, when black insurgents mounted a campaign against the Arab-dominated Khartoum regime because they felt they were being marginalised.\n<\/p>\n
\n More than 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur and some 2.5 million displaced, the United Nations says.\n<\/p>\n
\n The ICC has indicted Bashir for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and for genocide related to the conflict in Darfur.\n<\/p>\n
\n The SPLM-N mounted its campaign in 2011 in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President Omar al-Bashir launched talks in Khartoum Saturday on Sudan's ailing economy and the insurgencies in its border regions, despite a boycott by mainstream opposition and rebel groups. Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, announced the dialogue in January 2014 but spent more than a year making preparations and negotiating conditions […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[553],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-2469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n