S. Sudan's army withdraws from occupied oil field
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E-mail Xinhua, April 23, 2012
South Sudan's army said on Sunday it had wrapped up its withdrawal from occupied Heglieg oil field after suffering huge casualties in a ten-day battle with the Sudanese army.
Khartoum has disclosed that 938 soldiers of Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA)-- South Sudan's army-- and Darfur rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) were killed during the battle to restore the Heglieg oil area.
"The Sudanese army has managed to kill 938 soldiers and dispersed seven battalions of the SPLA and JEM; and arrested many of their commanders during the battles of restoration of Heglieg," Maj. General Kamal Abdul-Marouf, Sudanese army commander who led the Heglieg battle, was quoted as saying by Al-Sudani daily.
"The Sudanese armed forces have led fierce hand-to-hand battles with the enemy inside the town to avoid harming oil facilities with fire arms," he added, noting that the Sudanese army has confiscated most of the weapons used by the SPLA during the battles.
The Sudanese government on Friday announced the oil-rich area of Heiglieg was "liberated" after being seized by the SPLA.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said that the Sudanese army has "forcibly" restored the Heglieg area, insisting that South Sudan forces have fled and not voluntarily withdrawn as the South Sudan government has claimed.
In a related development, Al Ray Al Am daily reported that Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Khartoum to consult on measures to bury the bodies of SPLA soldiers killed during the battles in Heglieg.
The ministry said it did that to show commitment to international and humanitarian laws, namely, the four Geneva agreements and the annex and protocol related to international conflicts, adding that the two sides have agreed to follow the procedures stipulated in those agreements.
Meanwhile, the Sudanese Oil Ministry has started to make necessary arrangements to resume oil pumping from Higlieg oil fields after taking the area back.
Sudanese State Minister for Oil Ishaq Bashir said oil pumping in Heglieg would resume very soon, adding that the operation of the oil fields and oil facilities would be undertaken in coordination with Sudanese Armed Forces, the paper reported.
The minister further expected the Heglieg oil fields to enter the production circle as soon as possible after the completion of required technical revisions at oil facilities and after the armed forces end land mines examinations.
The Sudanese Oil Ministry earlier decided to send a technical team to the Heglieg area to evaluate the damage to the oil facilities after restoring the area.
The ministry also said earlier that Sudan has lost 30 percent of its oil production due to the war between the Sudanese army and South Sudan army in the Heglieg area.
The South seized Sudan's most important oil field Heglieg on April 10 and occupied it for ten days, sparking strong international criticisms, including from UN chief Ban Ki-moon who called it illegal.
The Heglieg battle was the worst since South Sudan won independence in July 2011.
Sudanese President Bashir has vowed not to hold any talks with South Sudan on the oil issue and not to allow South Sudan to transport oil through the Sudanese territory.
Juba would only "use the oil revenues to destroy Sudan and to finance the criminals in Sudan," Bashir said while addressing a mass rally on Friday evening in central Khartoum.
He said that there were still remaining forces of the South Sudanese army in the two border states of Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
Bashir also said he had instructed Defense Minister Abdul-Rahim Mohammed Hussein to get fully prepared before the autumn of this year for clearing the South Sudanese army from the Sudanese territory.
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