Peace talks between the Ugandan government and rebels of Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) may stall again barely a day after the resumption, due to LRA's accusation of the Ugandan army attacking their position in South Sudan.

State-owned New Vision Saturday quoted a protest letter signed by LRA delegation chairman Martin Ojul as saying that the rebels urged the chief mediator, Vice President of South Sudan Riek Machar, to prevail on the government so as to save the talks.

The letter stated that since the extension of the truce on April 14, there have been "repeated and unprovoked attacks on the LRA positions by the Ugandan People's Defense Force (UPDF)."

"We wish to register our protest against these blatant and flagrant violations and call upon you, through the Cessation of Hostilities Monitoring Team, to take immediate intervention measures to ensure the strict implementation of the agreement," it said.

"We also wish to draw your attention to the fact that it may be futile to continue with the peace talks when there is no inkling that one of the parties is committed to respecting any agreement signed as a result of the present effort."

The letter claimed that on Friday morning, the Ugandan army attacked an LRA position at Got Rwot near Parajok in Magwi county, Eastern Equatoria in Sudan.

It also alleged that in a separate incidence, the UPDF attacked an LRA position at Obboo Hill, still in Magwi county.

However, the spokesman of the Ugandan government delegation Barigye-Bahoku, dismissed the claims as the usual LRA tricks.

"We don't have forces in the Magwi area. Even the observation points have been removed," Barigye said.

"It is their style of work. This is not the first time they are making such claims," he added.

Barigye said the monitoring team, consisting also of LRA representatives, could verify the claims.

"If anything had happened they should have told us. They went to the mediator. They should have given us a copy of the letter. Those are their tactics," said Barigye.

The letter, on a newly designed LRA colored letterhead, was copied to the United Nations Special Envoy, Joachim Chissano, the observers from the five countries and the chairman of the monitoring team, Maj. Gen. Wilson Deng. It was not copied to the government delegation.

The peace talks have been limping on for nine months. On several occasions in the past, the LRA pulled out or made new demands, claiming UPDF attacks.

The LRA itself has been accused of numerous ambushes and attacks in the past months, mainly against the civilian population of South Sudan.

The southern Sudan mediated talks resumed on Thursday after a four-month lull when the LRA pulled out vowing that they would not return to the negotiation table until their demand of changing the talk's mediator and venue is met.

The talks are seen as a chance to end the two-decade-long LRA insurgency that left tens of thousands of people dead and over 1.4 million people homeless in northern Uganda.

Source: Xinhua