Watch part two 

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague started hearing a dispute between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement over the status of the Abyei region.

The oil-rich region on the border between north and south Sudan was a major conflict area in over 20 years of civil war and turned into a divisive issue during the peace talks between the Sudanese government and the Southern Sudanese rebels.

The dispute led to increasing tensions and many confrontations over the past two years, with each side complaining that the other violated the peace agreement that ended the civil war in 2005.  

Inside Story takes a closer look at the likely scenarios in Abyei after the arbitration verdict is issued, and we also discuss what lies beneath the ground in Abyei.

What is the chance of both sides accepting a verdict? Will the arbitration finally end the dispute over Abyei?

Presenter Kamahl Santamaria is joined by Luka Biong Deng, head of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement delegation at the Hague hearings, and Sara Pantuliano, a programme leader and research fellow with the Humanitarian Policy Group at the Overseas Development Institute.

This episode of Inside Story aired from Monday, April 20, 2009.