Sudan's First Vice-President and former rebel leader John Garang died in a helicopter crash in southern Sudan, Reuters quoted officials as saying on Monday. Sudanese officials said Garang, six of his companions and a crew of seven had died on Sunday after the Ugandan presidential helicopter he was traveling in crashed. Members of Garang's Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the Sudanese government vowed to press for peace. "We are confident that the peace agreement will proceed as it was planned and drawn up and that the future of Sudan will remain a trust in our hearts and the hearts of the brothers in the movement (SPLM)," Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said in a televised statement. SPLM deputy leader Salva Kiir Mayardit told a news conference in Nairobi, where members wept in grief: "Sudan has lost its loved son Dr. John Garang. "We in the SPLA (Sudan People's Liberation Army) and SPLM will continue his vision for a peaceful Sudan. ... We want to assure everyone that the leadership and all cadres of the SPLM/SPLA will remain united and strive to faithfully implement the comprehensive peace agreement."
