Sudanese march for peace

Leading actors and comedians are taking part

Thousands of people including large numbers of children are marching to Sudanese capital, Khartoum, in an effort to bring an end to the protracted civil war.

We are appealing to all sides to stop the war in our country and achieve peace here, in the continent and in the whole world

12-year-old participant

The peace march began at Wad Medani, about 150km (94 miles) from Khartoum with an estimated 1,000 participants, but within hours the numbers are reported to have swelled to about 25,000.

"We are appealing to all sides to stop the war in our country and achieve peace here, in the continent and in the whole world," said Omar Awad el-Basha, a 12-year-old on the march.

The two-day demonstration has been organised jointly by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Sudanese Movement for Children.

Both organisations are particularly concerned about the humanitarian effects of the conflict on children.

Co-ordination

UNICEF spokesman Thomas Ekvall said one aim was to highlight that past efforts to co-ordinate aid programmes there had not been entirely successful.

Many of the marchers are children

"If we all work together in a coherent, co-ordinated, realistic fashion, we can all ensure that we can achieve these goals for the children," he told The Associated Press.

The Sudanese President, Omar el-Bashir, is reported to be planning to address the marchers when they arrive in Khartoum later on Saturday.

Rebels in the mostly Christian and animist southern Sudan have been fighting the central government in the Arab Muslim north for greater autonomy for the last 18 years.

The conflict has claimed the lives of more than two million people, mostly through war-related famine.