BISSAU, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Senegalese government and the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC) signed a peace agreement on Sunday in Bissau, thanks to the mediation of Bissau-Guinean President Umaro Sissoco Embalo.
Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and the representative of the MFDC's southern front signed the agreement, which aims to end hostilities, demobilize fighters and facilitate their social reintegration.
The document also reaffirms the commitment made in a previous agreement, signed on Aug. 4, 2022, also in Bissau, in which both parties had expressed their willingness to achieve a cessation of hostilities to establish lasting peace in Senegal's Casamance region.
"Guinea-Bissau and Senegal must work together to promote peace in Casamance, because the instability of this region affects us all," Sonko said while signing the peace agreement in the Bissau-Guinean capital.
Embalo, the Bissau-Guinean president, expressed his satisfaction with the meeting and the signing of the agreement.
"We cannot take Senegal's stability lightly, regardless of who is in power," he said. "If there is a problem there, we will be directly affected, and vice versa."
The conflict between the Senegalese government and MFDC rebels has been ongoing since 1982. ■
