SIRTE, Libya – Darfur peace talks began in Libya on Saturday, with key rebel groups missing.  The absence of major rebel leaders is dampening hopes of successful talks. Mediators have already downplayed the goals of the conference, stating that the focus will now be to “create conditions” for effective peace talks to take place.

The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) rebels stated from the beginning that they would not attend the peace talks until the African Union and United Nations deploy their joint force of 26,000 peacekeepers.  The peacekeepers are not due to arrive until January.  On Friday, the leader of the rival Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) announced that he was boycotting as well due to the extension of invitations to smaller, less representative rebel factions.   Both the SLA and JEM argue that the smaller factions are just stooges for the Sudanese government.

The talks were initially scheduled in early September by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to try to end over four years of fighting which has left more than 200,000 dead and over 2 million displaced.

For more information, please see:

BBC News – Darfur talks open without rebels – 27 October 2007

International Herald Tribune – Darfur peace talks open to a grim start with main rebel groups absent – 27 October 2007

Yahoo (Reuters) – Darfur peace talks to begin without key rebels – 27 October 2007

For more information on the Darfur conflict, please see the following Impunity Watch reports: Upcoming Peace Talks in Sudan in Jeopardy; New Atrocities in Darfur; Ceasefire Ends in Sudan; African Union Peacekeepers Attacked in Darfur; Ongoing Conflict in Sudan; ICC Prosecutor Demands Arrests in Sudan; Secretary General Urges Sudan President to Commit to Ceasefire; Peace Talks on Darfur Scheduled for October