Congo rebels stall talks, envoy says

UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo led members of delegations negotiating the conflict yesterday from a meeting room. (Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images)

NAIROBI - Eastern Congo peace talks have stalled because the rebel groups delegation has no power to make decisions, UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo said yesterday.

Representatives of the Democratic Republic of Congo's government and rebels have been meeting in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, since Monday to formalize a cease-fire and discuss a peace process.

"We cannot move because at every stage we are told by CNDP [rebels] that they have to refer by their political core and we are held up for hours on end," Obasanjo said.

Still, he emphasized that talks had not collapsed and said he was sending a delegation to meet rebel leader Laurent Nkunda in Congo today.

He said the government delegation was being more flexible.

Years of low-level fighting in eastern Congo intensified with a rebel offensive Nkunda launched Aug. 28. The subsequent fighting has driven more than 250,000 people from their homes.

The rebels and government soldiers all are accused of atrocities against civilians.

ASSOCIATED PRESS