New Sudan Fighting Kills More Than 100

The Sudanese ceasefire has been broken, with more than 100 people killed in a series of clashes between the Sudanese army and rebels, al-Jazeera reports. The military says fighters loyal to rebel leader George Athor attacked an army base in Jonglei earlier this week, setting off the violence. In the ensuing clashes, roughly 50 fighters had been killed on each side, an army spokesman said, in addition to 39 civilians.

“The number of casualties is high because the attacks were a surprise,” the spokesman was quoted as saying. “This is something we were not expecting because we trusted the ceasefire that was signed.” But Athor told the Sudan Radio Service that the Sudanese army was the first to break the truce. The fighting comes just days after Omar al-Bashir said he'd honor the south's vote to secede. (More Sudan stories.)