Thousands of Sudanese well-wishers on 5 December welcomed a delegation from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) to Khartoum. The first visit to Khartoum by the rebel group in about 20 years attracted about 2,000 supporters, many of whom gathered in or near Khartoum international airport cheering and shouting: 'Welcome to the heroes, welcome to the new Sudan'. On arriving in Khartoum, the SPLA leader, John Garang, said that he was optimistic that meetings between the delegation and senior government officials would be fruitful. 'We have never been to Khartoum as a movement,' Garang said. 'This is a goodwill mission to assure the Sudanese people that the SPLA is committed to peace.' The meetings in Khartoum will be in addition to the scheduled meetings in Kenya, which are set to resume on 5 December.