The African Union (AU) has established a ceasefire monitoring body in Sudan's troubled western region of Darfur, the AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS) said in a statement on Thursday.

The Darfur Ceasefire Commission was inaugurated at the Force Headquarters of the AMIS in al-Fashir, capital of the North Darfur state and the biggest city in the region, on Tuesday, the statement said.

The commission is responsible for implementation and monitoring of ceasefire provisions of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) signed on May 5 and other previous agreements signed between conflicting parties in the region.

The inaugural ceremony was chaired by Ambassador Baba Gana Kingibe, special representative of the AU Commission Chairperson in Sudan, and was witnessed by the UN-AU joint assessment team led by Said Djinnit, the AU commissioner for Peace and Security and Jean-Marie Guehenno, UN undersecretary-general for Peacekeeping Operations, which is currently visiting Sudan.

Representatives of the Sudanese government and the main faction in the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Mini Minawi who signed the DPA with the government in the Nigerian capital Abuja on May 5 also attended the ceremony.

The two sides pledged to cooperate fully with the commission in an effort to end the conflict in Darfur.

It was also attended by representatives from the Abddu al-wahid al-Nour faction of the SLM and the Justice and Equality Movement ( JEM), which have not signed the DPA, but are bound by the N' Djamena Ceasefire Agreement, which the Sudanese government signed with Darfur rebel groups in April 2004.

Addressing the ceremony, Djinnit hailed the fact that all parties were represented at the event and called upon them to quickly take up their tasks.

"In the immediate term, efforts must be made to strengthen AMIS in order to enable it to carry out its new responsibilities as stipulated in the DPA and other agreements," the AU official stressed.

AMIS Force Commander and Chairperson of the commission General CRU Ihekire underlined a pivotal role to be played by the commission in resolving issues related to ceasefire violations.

The commission will leave no stone unturned in facilitating the resolution of disputes by dialogue, he added.

Guehenno, on his part, urged all parties to build upon the momentum provided by this important event.

He expressed determination of the international community, especially the UN, to bolster support for valuable efforts of the African Union to bring about a lasting peace to Darfur.

Kingibe also announced that efforts should be made to inaugurate soon a joint commission comprising the AU, the UN and all the signatories of the DPA, if possible, before an AU summit on July 1.

Source: Xinhua