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The President of the Office of Darfur Peace Follow-up, Dr. Amin Hassan Omer has described the recent conditions of Sadiq Al Mahdi in Johannesburg with regards to signing the road map as step backwards and will not push him forward and if he is willing to join the peace process the doors are open.

South Sudan resumed talks with Sudan on Sunday on a raft of thorny issues, including borders and oil revenues, still outstanding from its 2011 secession.

The south's foreign affairs, defence, interior and oil ministers travelled to Khartoum for the talks, the first since a unity government was formed in Juba last month in a bid to end its devastating civil war.

"There are some difficulties in our relations," South Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor acknowledged at a joint press conference with his Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Ghandour.

 In unexpected move which is described as a breakthrough, the South Sudan’s presidency has agreed to review the 28 states and come up with a recommendation on the number of new states within 30 days.Kiir, First Vice President, Riek Machar and Vice President, James Wani, at the presidential palace on Wednesday.

In a joint statement to the press by the two deputies after the meeting, a committee of 15 members will be constituted from all the parties to the August 2015 peace agreement and from the international partners to come up with recommendation on new states.

Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir would head his country’s delegation participating in the upcoming Arab League (AL) summit which will be held in the capital of Mauritania, Nouakchott in July, said Sudan’s state foreign minister

The Sudanese president visited Mauritania two times since the ICC issued the arrest warrants.Bashir is under two International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants since 2008 for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in Darfur.

The representative of the Arab League in South Sudan, Mohammed Munsif, confirmed their commitment to the return of stability in the country.

Munsif made this statement after a meeting with South Sudan foreign affairs minister Deng Alor on Wednesday.

He added that Egypt and Arab League are reiterating their commitment to the return of stability in South Sudan.

For his part, the minister of foreign affairs Deng Alor said it is important for South Sudan to have a relationship with the Arab League.

A Sudan opposition leader said her party will honor an African Union invitation to hold talks in Ethiopia with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir’s government to discuss a national dialogue intended to resolve the country’s problems. 

A national dialogue launched last year by President Bashir is currently being held in Sudan. 

Mariam al-Mahdi, daughter of opposition leader Sadig al-Mahdi and vice president of the Umma party has been critical of the current dialogue because it is being held in what she calls, "an unfriendly environment." 

South Africa's High Court has denied the government leave to appeal against a court ruling that it should have arrested Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir during a recent visit.

The High Court on Wednesday rejected the government's bid to appeal the ruling that it had a legal duty to arrest the Sudanese president.

"We do not hold the opinion that the appeal has reasonable prospects of success at all," Judge Hans Fabricius said in the country's administrative capital Pretoria.

"The application for leave to appeal is dismissed with costs."

 Sudan’s Popular Congress Party (PCP) led by Hassan al-Turabi has disclosed ongoing contacts with the exiled leader of the opposition National Umma Party (NUP) al-Sadiq al-Mahdi to convince him to return to the country.

The NUP leader left the country in August 2014 after a month in jail over remarks he made against the government militia known as the Rapid Support Force (RSF).