The presidents of Sudan and Chad have agreed in principle to prevent armed groups from operating along their shared border area, including the conflict-ridden Darfur region.

In signing the peace deal on Thursday Omar al-Bashir, Sudan's president, and Idriss Deby, his Chadian counterpart, committed to implement past accords that have previously failed to end the violence in the region.

The two leaders agreed to "inhibit all activities of armed groups and prevent the use of our respective territories for the destabilization of one or the other of our states".

The non-aggression pact calls for the establishment of a monitoring group comprising foreign ministers from each country.

Al-Bashir and Deby sealed the agreement on the sidelines of a summit held by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Dakar, the Senegalese capital.

They also committed to normalize relations between their countries.

The signing was witnessed by Ban Ki-moon, UN secretary-general, and Abdoulaye Wade, the president of Senegal, who brokered the agreement.

The Sudanese government denies backing armed groups or supplying weapons to Chadian rebels who launched a failed assault last month on N'djamena, the Chadian capital.

PHOTO CAPTION

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir, left, and Chad President Idriss Deby, right, shake hands after signing a non-aggression pact in Dakar, Senegal Thursday, March. 13, 2008.

Al-Jazeera