Security forces restored a tense calm to the Sudanese capital of Khartoum today, a day after 36 people were killed in bloody riots sparked by the death of Sudanese vice president and former southern rebel leader John Garang.

Sudanese government and rebel officials have begun negotiating a ceasefire as part of a comprehensive agreement to end a 21-year war in Africa’s largest nation, the chief mediator said.

Sudanese government and rebel officials overcame a significant hurdle toward reaching a comprehensive peace agreement today by signing a protocol on how to share the nation’s wealth, one of the major issues in the 20 year civil war.