have a significant fighting presence, they achieved a number of modest military victories. With the help of the SPLA, twice captured Hamishkoreb, before finally holding it from October 2002 until April 2006 when the SPLA withdrew from the NDA. By itself the Beja Congress held territory around Tokar, one of their historic strongholds, and the town of Khor Telkok near Kassala, which the NDA had declared to be their "capital". Politically the Beja Congress was far more effective, capitalizing on two different incidents in January 2005 where Sudanese security attacked and killed unarmed civilians. Shortly after these events the Beja Congress organized a national conference in which Musa Mohamed Ahmed, was elected chairman of the group. Further, the party has enjoyed some success in uniting its fractious and isolated people: internal clashes are reported to be down in numbers. The Congress has been particularly successful at mobilizing its young people: the student administrations at two of the three main universities in the east are controlled by the Beja Congress and the party is making inroads into even secondary and primary schools. Young observes, "Beja resentment and support for the BC is clear to anyone spending just a short time in the coffee shops of Port Sudan." Despite this, both the Beja Congress and the Rashaida Free Lions felt marginalized within the NDA. These tensions came to a head after the Egyptian security services organized negotiations between the NCP and the NDA in Cairo in 2004. Both the Beja Congress and the Free Lions walked out of the negotiations, claiming that their interests were not being fairly represented. Two months later the NDA held its annual conference in Asmara amid considerable acrimony. When the DUP, the Sudanese Communist Party, and Legitimate Command components of the NDA entered the Sudan National Assembly shortly afterwards, the NDA was obviously moribund. When the withdrawal of the SPLA from the NDA in 2004 led to the collapse of that alliance, the Beja Congress joined with the Rashaida Free Lions and other smaller groups to form the Eastern Front rebel group. However, weak leadership, an inability to reach out to other ethnic groups in eastern Sudan, and dependence on Eritrean support led to the failure of the Eastern Front. The Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement of 14 October 2006 called for the absorption of the Eastern Front armed forces into the Sudanese military in exchange for political