Senior US envoy to push for talks on Sudan visit

Top envoy will urge the army to stop attacks on protesters and for negotiations between parties to begin

Victims of violence in the crackdown on Sudanese protesters receiving treatment at a hospital in Khartoum. Reuters

The top US diplomat for Africa will head to Sudan to encourage talks between Sudan's military rulers and protesters, the State Department said on Monday.

Tibor Nagy, assistant secretary of state for Africa, "will call for a cessation of attacks against civilians and urge parties to work towards creating an enabling environment" for talks to resume, the State Department said.

Protesters, led by students concerned by the rising cost of living, rallied for months and the movement led the army to remove veteran leader Omar Al Bashir in April.

But the army last week crushed the continued demonstrations, leaving scores dead, after a stalemate in talks in which the protesters called for a swift transition to civilian rule.

Mr Nagy denounced the crackdown and warned Sudan that it needed to move to a civilian-led government if it wants to improve relations with the US.

He will leave for Sudan on Wednesday and visit Ethiopia to discuss the crisis with Addis Ababa and the African Union.

He will also visit Mozambique, where he will take part in a US-Africa business conference, and South Africa, where he will deliver a speech on US policy towards the continent at Wits University in Johannesburg.