Former rebels from eastern Sudan were on Tuesday sworn in to their new roles in the central government in Khartoum as part of a peace deal that ended a decade of fighting.
Eastern Front chairperson Mussa Mohammed Ahmed was sworn in as presidential assistant, his deputy Amna Dirar as presidential adviser and secretary general Mubarak Mabruk as minister of state in the Transport Ministry.
Rebels from the Eastern Front, made up of the Beja Congress named after eastern Sudan’s largest ethnic group and the Free Lions of the Rashidiya Arabs, signed a peace deal with Khartoum in October last year.
Earlier this month, rebel leaders began returning to Sudan from exile in neighbouring Eritrea and former rebel fighters have been given the choice of returning to civilian life or being incorporated into government forces.
Under the peace deal, Khartoum is to allocate the impoverished region a total of $600-million over five years for development.
Eastern Front rebels had similar aims as their better-known counterparts in western Sudan’s Darfur, fighting for greater autonomy and control of natural resources. — Sapa-AFP