[JURIST] The Sudanese government [official website] said Sunday that it is ready to formally accept [Reuters report] the peace deal [AU materials] mediated by the African Union [official website] for the war-torn region of Darfur [JURIST news archive]. Majzoub al-Khalifa, head of the government negotiating team, said that Sudan is willing to sign the agreement despite some reservations and added, "The government wishes to confirm its full commitment to implement the agreement in good faith. The delegation is also fully convinced that any difficulties that might come up in the implementation stages can be resolved by consensus between all the parties." Sunday is the deadline set by the AU for the conclusion of two years of talks between the government and rebel groups.

The three major rebel groups in negotiations with the government have not yet agreed to the deal and one has asked for an extension on the deadline. Rebel groups said they have not had enough time to review the draft document and raised concerns about provisions related to security and power sharing. AU negotiator Salim Ahmed Salim has said, however, that the deal cannot be changed [BBC report] and that, "We have done everything that is possible to make an agreement possible." AP has more. The Sudan Tribune has local coverage.