Sudan continues march towards peace

Just two weeks after signing a comprehensive peace agreement with Christian rebels in the south of the country, Khartoum has now signed a preliminary peace deal with rebels in northeastern Sudan after 16 years of conflict. I can't help but wonder how much of President Bashir's new found desire to get along with his countrymen is a result of the fear that Sudan may be on George Bush's list of Islamist nations that needs some American-style tough love. The State Department declaration that the ethnic purges in Darfur constitute genocide may have been taken as a sign by Bashir that the U.S. was building a legal case for invasion. Instead, the international community has slapped Sudan with sanctions as pressure rises for a negotiated peace to end the violence in Darfur. Read more here. Learn more about Sudan here.