Is Sudan looking at another explosion of violence five years after an agreement was signed to end Africa's longest running civil war?

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement between President Omar al-Bashir's National Congress Party and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement ended a 22-year conflict.

The 2005 Accord provides for Sudan's first national elections in 24 years to be held in April. It also has provisions for a referendum in the mostly Christian southern region early next year on whether it will break away from the Muslim-led Khartoum government and become fully independent.

But a report by international aid groups say that deal is now on the brink of collapse because of violence between ethnic groups and tribes in the south. Around 2,500 people were killed and 350,000 fled their homes - a human toll greater than in Darfur in the country's west.

The report also warns that a lack of development aid in southern Sudan threatens the chances of keeping the peace there.

On Thursday's Riz Khan we ask: Is the international community again ignoring the warning signs from Sudan?

Joining the discussion will be Scott Gration, the US special envoy to Sudan. We will also have with us Michael Gaouette who manages the United Nations mission in Sudan from the UN headquarters.

This episode of the Riz Khan show aired on Monday, January 11, 2010.