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Rice Receives Apology After Sudanese Security Manhandles Staff, Press


U.S. officials say Sudan has apologized to visiting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice after members of her staff and reporters traveling with her were manhandled by Sudanese security personnel in Khartoum.

Ms. Rice had expressed outrage following the incident which occurred as she met with President Omar Hassan al-Bashir at his residence for talks on the situation in Sudan's Darfur region.

U.S. officials say security personnel shoved members of Ms. Rice's staff, including senior advisor Jim Wilkinson, as well as members of the press, as they tried to enter the meeting.

Later, when Ms. Rice arrived in Darfur, her spokesman, Sean McCormack, said she had received a personal phone call from Sudan's foreign minister, Mustafa Osman Ismail, apologizing for the incident.

Ms. Rice is touring a refugee camp in Darfur, where government troops and militias have been battling rebels for more than two years.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and AP.

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