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Uganda and rebels likely to sign peace deal


    JUBA, Sudan (Reuters) - Uganda and the rebel Lord's Resistance Army are expected to sign a final peace deal to end one of Africa's longest conflicts on April 5, about a week later than a Kampala deadline, officials said on Wednesday.

    Progress has slowed because of the rebels' demand that theInternational Criminal Court (ICC) drop war crimes indictmentsagainst their leader Joseph Kony and two deputies.

    Both sides signed documents outlining the final agreementand implementation timetable late on Tuesday in Sudan'ssouthern town of Juba where talks have been held.

    "We have completed all the negotiations successfully. Wehave moved from enemies to be brothers and sisters again," saidUgandan Interior Minister Ruhakana Rugunda.

    But the chief negotiator for the Lord's Resistance Armydelegation, David Nyekorach Matsanga, told reporters the rebelswould not begin to implement the deal until the ICC lifted aninternational arrest warrant for Kony and his deputies.

    "We cannot assemble or disarm when the ICC warrants arestill on our heads," said Matsanga.

    He said Kony would sign the deal, but not in Juba becauseof the threat of arrest.

    Tens of thousands have been killed in the two-decade-oldrebellion, which has also displaced nearly two million peoplein the coffee-exporting East African country.

    (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say onthe top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/ )

    (Reporting by Skye Wheeler; editing by Katie Nguyen)