Violence ahead of Sudan independence vote

At least nine people have died during attacks on southern Sudanese troops, ahead of a referendum on secession in the south.

Gunmen targeted the Southern Peoples' Liberation Army, or SPLA, late Friday and early Saturday in the oil-rich Unity state.

Southern army spokesman Col. Philip Aguer said forces loyal to rebel leader Gatluak Gai attacked SPLA forces in an oil-rich area bordering northern Sudan.

Aguer said six rebels died in the exchanges. It's not clear whether the other casualties were part of the southern Sudanese military.

Independent south would be unable to cope, president warns

For days, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has been taking a conciliatory tone about the referendum. Under international pressure to keep tensions low, he has been saying the northern-based government in Khartoum would accept the results of the referendum.

However, in an interview with Al-Jazeera TV on Friday, he issued dire warnings about the fate of southern Sudan should it choose to separate.

Al-Bashir said the south "does not have the ability to provide for its citizens or create a state or authority."

He further warned of instability and possible war in the oil-rich border city of Abyei should the referendum pass.

Voting begins on Sunday and will last a week.

The vote will decide whether to draw a border between the north, where mostly Arab and Muslim people live, and the south, populated mostly by blacks who are Christian or follow traditional animist beliefs.

The vote was called for in the 2005 peace agreement that ended 21 years of north-south civil war in the African nation.

A simple majority must vote for independence for the referendum to pass, and at least 60 per cent of the nearly four million registered voters must cast ballots.

The southern Sudanese have long complained they have been discriminated against by Khartoum and are expected to vote overwhelmingly in favour of separation.