Kenya’s opposition leader, Raila Odinga reportedly held seven-hour meeting with President Salva Kiir in Juba.
Odinga who was accompanied by one of his lawyer and a lawmaker held talks with Salva Kiir an effort of finding ways to resolve the civil war in the world’s youngest nation that has left tens of thousands of people killed and others displaced.
Reports indicate that, the Kenyan opposition leader is also scheduled to travel to South Africa to meet the exiled former South Sudanese first vice-president Riek Machar.
The Machar-led rebel faction has welcomed Kenya’s move to involved the opposition leader in the negotiations for peace in the war-hit nation.
The group, however, insists that Machar, who is in South Africa, be released and allowed to sit in the talks. They have said that this would reduce the time needed to bring calm to South Sudan.
“We are aware that Raila met President Salva Kiir in Juba, and we are looking forward to a meeting with Dr Machar too. We hope that this initiative is further helped by Kenya by authorising Raila to try and bridge the gap,” Henry Odwar, a member of the Machar-led group was quoted saying.
Odwar and a team of the armed opposition negotiators who leading the efforts to find a lasting solution were in Nairobi on Sunday to brief the South Sudanese living in Kenya on the progress of the peace talks mediated by the regional bloc (IGAD).
