* Army, rebel clashes killed 266 last week-army
* Violence kills more than 1,000 this year
* Rhetoric between north and south heating up ahead of split
By Jeremy Clarke
JUBA, Sudan, April 29 (Reuters) - Clashes between south Sudan&${esc.hash}39;s army and militias killed at least 266 people last week, the army said on Friday, bringing the total death count in a wave of violence this year to more than 1,000.
The oil-producing south has seen a surge of attacks from renegade militia leaders in the countdown to its independence from the north, expected in July.
Southerners overwhelmingly voted to secede in a January referendum, promised in a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of civil war with the north fought over religion, ethnicity, ideology and oil.
Analysts warn the underdeveloped south, roughly the size of France, could become a failed state and destabilise the whole region if security deteriorates further.
Southern leaders have accused Khartoum of backing the rebels to disrupt the region and keep control of its oil.
Khartoum has dismissed the accusation, as have militia leaders who say they are rebelling against what they say is an autocratic government in the south.
Forces loyal to militia commander Gabriel Tang clashed with the southern army (SPLA) in the south&${esc.hash}39;s Jonglei state on Saturday, during discussions over reintegrating his fighters into the military, killing 165 people, said army spokesman Philip Aguer.
"This includes 30 civilians who were caught in crossfire because the fighting was at very close range. The others killed were SPLA and rebels," Aguer added.
Aguer said Tang was now under "house arrest".
AID SUSPENDED
Another 101 people died in clashes that started on Tuesday last week in the south&${esc.hash}39;s Unity state, the SPLA said.
The dead included five civilians, 26 SPLA and 70 fighters loyal to SPLA officer-turned rebel commander Peter Gadet, the southern army added.
More than 800 people had died in attacks this year before last week&${esc.hash}39;s violence, according to U.N. figures.
The growing insecurity forced the U.N.&${esc.hash}39;s World Food Programme (WFP) to suspend aid in parts of the south&${esc.hash}39;s Jonglei and Lakes states earlier this week.
The violence has also coincided with worsening relations between northern and southern leaders over the contested border region of Abyei.
On Thursday, Sudan&${esc.hash}39;s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said he would not recognise south Sudan as an independent state if it insisted on claiming Abyei, triggering criticism by the south and the United States.
Abyei was due to vote in January on whether to join the north or south, but north-south disputes over who could vote derailed that ballot and talks over the status of the region have stalled. (Editing by Ulf Laessing and Andrew Heavens)
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