Sudan has denied striking South Sudanese territory .
striking
sudan deny strike south sudanese territory
Sudan has denied <m> striking </m> South Sudanese territory .
http : / / www . nytimes . com / 2011 / 11 / 11 / world / africa / south - sudan - accuses - sudan - of - bombing - civilian - camp . html ? _ r=0
South Sudan Accuses Sudan of Bombing Civilian Camp Amid Fears of War
Published : November 10 , 2011
Civilians fled as bombs fell on a camp for displaced people in South Sudan on Thursday , and President Salva Kiir accused the Sudanese government of planning to invade his newly independent nation .
Less than six months after South Sudan broke away from Sudan , an act that was the culmination of a peace accord to end decades of civil war , tensions between the neighbors are crystallizing into fears of direct confrontation .
Speaking in South Sudan's capital , Juba , Mr . Kiir denounced the Sudanese government for threatening what he called a "military invasion" of South Sudan , and he rejected accusations by the Sudanese government that his country was arming Sudanese rebels as "utterly baseless and malicious . "
Mr . Kiir has also accused the Sudanese government of bombing the South Sudanese area of Guffa in recent days , killing at least seven people and potentially moving the insurgencies on both sides of the border closer to an international conflict .
The United States issued a statement on Thursday condemning "in the strongest possible terms" what it called "negative developments" between the nations , particularly the airstrike by the Sudanese forces .
"The provocative aerial bombardments near the border increase the potential of direct confrontation between Sudan and South Sudan , " the American statement said .
Sudan has denied <m> striking </m> South Sudanese territory .
Nevertheless , on Thursday afternoon an Antonov bomber dropped four bombs on the South Sudanese area of Yida , hitting a refugee camp of roughly 21 , 000 people , some of them northern Sudanese who had crossed the border since the rebellion in Sudan began .
According to an aid worker with knowledge of the event , two bombs fell on an airstrip , one hit a school and one landed on a market , but did not detonate .
There were varying reports of casualties , but none could be confirmed .
While the two nations continue to discuss how to split lucrative oil revenues and the fate of the contested region of Abyei , a spreading rebellion inside Sudan has prompted the Sudanese government to accuse the south of providing military support to the rebels .
Last week , the Sudanese government lodged a formal complaint with the United Nations Security Council , arguing that South Sudan was trying to start a border war .
"We don't have any intention to go to war again , but it is now up to the southern government to either strengthen its state without hostility , or to disturb us , " said a Sudanese government spokesman , Rabie A . Atti .
"If they come to war , they will lose a lot . "
Many residents in the Sudanese provinces of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile fought alongside the south during its civil war with the north .
But the 2005 peace treaty placed the two provinces in Sudan's territory , leaving South Sudan to hold a referendum to decide its own fate .
In January , the South Sudanese voted almost unanimously to secede from the rest of the country .
Their fellow combatants in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile remained on the other side of the border , and an armed rebellion soon began .
"We are ready to fight and continue until we reach Khartoum , " the Sudanese capital , said one of the rebel leaders , Abdel Aziz al - Hilu , in a September interview .
"We are prepared for a protracted war , a long war , " he added , "in order to see this regime ousted . "
In return , the Sudanese military has clamped down hard on the rebellion , filling the skies over Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile with Antonov bombers , some of which have flown over South Sudanese territory , too .
A satellite imaging project organized by the Enough Project , an advocacy group , has published what it says is evidence of mass graves in the rebellious regions , and the United Nations has said the military activity could amount to war crimes .
The United States , a close partner of South Sudan , had made strong overtures to the government in Sudan , saying that if it cooperated peacefully with South Sudan's transition to independence , economic sanctions on the country could be lifted .
But last week , President Obama seemed to change his mind , calling for sanctions to be extended over what he called "hostile" actions on the part of the Sudanese government that posed an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to American foreign policy .
"They promised us a lot of things ; nothing actually implemented , " said Mr . Atti , the Sudanese government spokesman .
"It's unfair . "
South Sudan - or Sudan - can ill afford a new war .
The economies of both nations are in a delicate state , with Sudan suffering from a loss of oil income since South Sudan's independence , and protests springing up in the streets of Khartoum early this year .
As for South Sudan , it is one of the least developed countries in the world .
Furthermore , it faces a number of internal rebellions itself , particularly in provinces near the border , and it has accused the Sudanese government of backing militias there .
"The overall view is that they have to exist with the other side , " said Aly Verjee , a senior researcher at the Rift Valley Institute .
"Even if you don't trust them so much , and if they are meddling in your own sovereign territory , there is a lot riding on that . "