Talks call after walkout in Sudan

The party of Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir has called for talks with the former southern rebels who have withdrawn from the unity government.

A National Congress Party official said that the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) walkout was a negotiating tactic.

But diplomats fear the move could jeopardise the 2005 deal that ended the 21-year north-south civil war.

The SPLM wants the pact to be honoured before returning to government.

These include boundary demarcations and the redeployment of northern troops from the south.