SOUTH SUDAN DECLARES EMERGENCY IN TWO STATES

      Juba, 30 Shafar 1435/2 Januari 2014 (MINA) – The South Sudanese President, Salva Kiir has declared a state of emergency in two states, according to the government’s official account.

     The decree issued on Wednesday covers Unity and Jonglei, where government troops and opposition forces loyal to Riek Machar, former vice president, have been engaged in fighting.

     The declaration came as the rival factions were set to open talks in Ethiopia on Thursday, aimed at bringing an end to the nearly three-week-old conflict, despite reports of an imminent military showdown in Jonglei.

     Sources said government and rebel negotiators arrived in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Wednesday.

      Getachew Reda, Ethiopian government spokesman, said the talks would focus on “monitoring mechanisms for the ceasefire”.

      Following the fall of Bor, Jonglei’s state capital, into the hands of the opposition on Tuesday, the government and rebels loyal to Machar agreed to meet for talks.

      For his part, Kiir named eight negotiators to represent his government in the proposed talks in Ethiopia, Al Jazeera quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

     Despite the preparations for the talks, thousands of government troops were making their way to Bor in an effort to wrest back control of the Jonglei state capital, setting up another possible fierce battle with opposition.

      Fighting is also going on in other fronts like Mayom and Malakal.

     Violence first erupted in South Sudan on December 15, when Kiir accused Machar of attempting a coup. Machar has denied this, in turn accusing Kiir of conducting a violent purge of his opponents.

     The fighting has since spread across the country, with the rebels seizing several areas in the oil-rich north.

   Thousands of people are feared dead, UN officials said, while close to 200,000 civilians have been forced to flee their homes – many seeking refuge with badly overstretched UN peacekeepers.

      Jacob Kurtzer, a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross, told Al Jazeera that refugees need immediate help.

      The UN has said it will do everything it can to prevent further “terrible acts of violence” in South Sudan. (T/P09/P04).

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)