KHARTOUM, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Sudan's army on Friday said it clashed with fighters from two rebel factions in the strife-torn Darfur region in a four-hour fight that left 21 people dead.
The military said forces from the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) loyal to Minni Minnawi ambushed its men on a road between the capital of South Darfur state Nyala and the capital of North Darfur state El Fasher on Thursday evening.
"We killed 13 JEM and SLA ... and also we lost eight men from the Sudanese army," said Sudanese army spokesman Al-Sawarmi Khaled.
No one was immediately available for comment from the rebel factions.
JEM and the SLA took up arms against Sudan's government in 2003 accusing it of neglecting the remote western region.
The violence in Darfur has died down from the mass killings reported in the early days of the conflict. But there have been sporadic clashes between the army and rebel forces, particularly since JEM walked out of floundering peace talks last year. (Reporting by Andrew Heavens; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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