South Sudan Government, Rebels to Hold Talks

The Ethiopian government says Kiir and and former vice president Machar agreed to send representatives to Addis Ababa on Tuesday.

In spite of the agreement, fighting continues in Bor, the main town in the Jonglei state. Machar and his supporters say fighters loyal to him have recaptured the town.  Rebels briefly seized control of Bor earlier this month.

There was no immediate word from the government on whether rebels have overrun the town.

The tribal violence erupted earlier this month, when President Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, accused Machar, an ethnic Nuer, of attempting a coup.

The United Nations says the fighting has left more than 1,000 people dead and displaced tens of thousands.

The East African bloc IGAD had set a Tuesday deadline for the two sides to hold face-to-face talks.

Machar said his delegation in Ethiopia would include Rebecca Nyandeng Garang. She is the widow of John Garang, the founder of South Sudan's ruling SPLM (Sudan People's Liberation Movement) party.

The United Nations and African Union for an immediate end to the fighting.

Statements from the U.N. Security Council and the AU's Peace and Security Council late Monday said dialogue should begin immediately between President Kiir and Machar.

The African Union also urged Mr. Kiir's government to release detained political leaders, and threatened to impose sanctions on those who continue to incite violence.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni visited Mr. Kiir on Monday, and warned Machar to sign a cease-fire deal or face action from its neighbors.  

The medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said Monday tens of thousands of South Sudanese have fled Bor since violence broke out there last week between government troops and the Machar-backed force - the so called "White Army."

White Army youths are known for the white powder they use to cover their skin as an insect repellant. Like Machar, they are ethnic Nuers.