Sudan accuses Chad of sending troops to aid rebels

By Andrew Heavens

EL FASHER, Sudan (Reuters) - Sudan's top official in North Darfur accused Chad Monday of sending troops into his territory to fight alongside Darfur rebels, raising the stakes in the simmering tension between the two countries.

North Darfur governor Osman Kebir said Chadian forces had reinforced fighters from Darfur's rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) in an attack on the strategic town of Kornoi on Saturday.

Sudan accused Chad of carrying out three air strikes on its territory last week, calling the raids an "act of war."

However, this was the first occasion in recent times that it had said Chadian ground troops had breached its border.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon repeated his call for all parties to cease fighting, according to a statement from U.N. spokeswoman Marie Okabe.

"(Ban) underscores that there is no military solution to the situation in the sub-region and urges the governments of Chad and Sudan to refrain from any act that may lead to a further escalation of tensions," Okabe said.

Chad said Sunday it had carried out the air raids, and fought near Sudan's border, to destroy anti-Chadian insurgents it said were taking refuge inside Sudan. It has so far not commented on Saturday's ground attack on Kornoi.

"Chadian aggression has reached the locality of Kornoi, a town near the Chadian border," said Kebir, speaking through a translator as he addressed a delegation of the leaders of the Arab League, the African Union Commission and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.