S. Sudan ceasefire talks continue as gov't battles rebels
南苏丹停火协议仍在协商阶段

The South Sudan crisis is still ongoing. Delegates at the peace talks in Addis Ababa have again met face-to-face. Mediators say they have narrowed the gap between them. So far though, there's no deal.

For the past 11 days, the Sheraton in Addis has hosted these on-off peace talks. And by Monday, the hotel's focus had shifted to the visiting Japanese prime minister. So the South Sudanese were forced to meet on the dance floor of the hotel's night club.

The mediators remain optimistic. "We have harmonized the two papers from the two delegations and at the moment we are trying to thrash out any issues they may have," said Gen. Lazarus Sumbeiywo, an IGAD mediator.

One big obstacle remains Juba's detention of 11 political detainees.

South Sudan's president Salva Kiir has so far defied international pressure for their release. And his rebel counterpart, Riek Machar, has defied pressure to drop demands for their release. Both men look to have dug in, and even for their representatives at these talks, it is deeply frustrating.

Mediators here insist they are making progress. But so far there's no agreement even on common ground - let alone a ceasefire. These talks are now heading into a third week.