The Ethiopian and South Sudan Peace Committees have met with the leader of the SPLM-SPLA In Opposition, Dr. Riek Machar, in Addis Ababa and urged him to end the conflict.

The committee members also met with the IGAD mediators and the government delegation to the peace talks and conveyed to them the same message.

“We have communicated the message of sentiment from over 90 million Ethiopians and message also from South Sudan to Dr. Riek Macha…to stop the war, stop killing, no more killing and what has come now as a result of the war must be averted now,” said Abune Tesfaselassie Medhain, chairperson of the Ethiopian Peace Committee for South Sudan.

The chairperson of South Sudan Peace Committee, Dr. David Kueth, says they have urged IGAD not to allow the warring parties to leave Addis Ababa without reaching a final peace agreement.

“We are really concerned that peace must be now not tomorrow,” Mr Kueth told Eye Radio.

“The response from both sides was positive that they would try their best. But before this we urged the IGAD through His Excellency Ambassador Seyum Mesfin, that these parties should be engaged and that if they don’t sign the agreement by the deadline of the 5th of March, they should not be allowed to break until they sign a peace agreement.”

Yesterday, the delegates to the IGAD-led peace process are continuing with discussions of contentious issues that arose in the finance and economics committee.