EXCERPTS (Via IMRA):

There is substantial reason to believe that some regional or international power {IMRA: Who?} is working relentlessly to bring about the division of Sudan.

This power is exploiting the armed struggle, fueling ethnic, tribal and religious hostilities between north and south and, ultimately, benefiting from the depletion of Sudan's economic, political and military resources, which the repressive regime in Khartoum has used to impose its hegemony over the south.

Maintaining the unity of Sudan and countering attempts to fragment it through a devastating and endless civil war serves Egypt's best interests. Egypt has successfully opposed regional and international attempts to split Sudan in recent years, and has used its influence to attempt to persuade the opposition forces to reach a peaceful settlement with Al-Bashir and Al-Turabi.

They, for their part, have provoked a series of disputes to keep relations between Egypt and Sudan strained. The most recent such provocation is Khartoum's refusal to honour a commitment to improve relations with Egypt, including agreements to return Egyptian property, and its reluctance to cooperate on security and the extradition of terrorists seeking asylum in Sudan.

International conditions, especially the bombing of US embassies in east Africa, have once again brought regimes that sponsor terrorism into the Spotlight.

Khartoum is fully aware that it ranks high on the list of sponsors of terrorism, that the division of Sudan into two states would serve certain interests, and that, were it not for Egypt's efforts, such a division would have been effected many years ago.

The regime's accusations that Egypt is interfering in its domestic affairs, therefore, are pitifully naive and obviously fabricated. These allegations constitute a virtual carte blanche for those who wish to see Sudan divided.