Sudan captures rebel leader in Darfur

By Mohammed Amin

KHARTOUM

Sudanese forces have arrested a rebel leader in the country’s troubled Darfur region, according to a military spokesman on Sunday.

Brig. Abdul Rahman Al-Ja’ali, a spokesman for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), told Anadolu Agency that Abdullah Rizig, a commander of the Savana rebel group, was arrested late Saturday in North Darfur after clashes between rebels and government troops.

"The rebel leader has been relocated to Khartoum and investigators have begun to question him," al-Ja’ali said, adding the rebel leader might face charges punishable by death.

"He will be brought to court as he has committed many criminal acts," the spokesman said.

Rebellion is punishable by death under Sudanese criminal laws.

According to the spokesman, nine rebel members have also been detained during the clashes, including one from South Sudan.

Rizig had been a member of a government militia called Border Guards that operated under the National Army Command. He, however, split after Sudan's decision last August to merge the militia into the RSF.

Darfur has been the scene of a ferocious war between the Sudanese government and three rebel movements since 2003. The conflict has left 300,000 people dead and around 2.5 million others displaced, according to UN figures.