KHARTOUM, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese army announced on Friday that it had received information of an imminent plot by a Darfur rebel group to attack the capital Khartoum and other major cities in the African country.

    The army said in a statement that it has received information on "preparations made by rebel Khalil Ibrahim to conduct sabotage attempt and a publicity stunt through infiltrating the capital and other towns."

    Khalil Ibrahim is the leader of rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) which is believed to have the largest military rebel force in Darfur.

    The Sudanese army said it had detected "infiltrations by these groups riding vehicles to the country through the Chadian borders," adding that "the Armed Forces have taken all measures to secure the cities and buildings."

    The statement, however, did not mention any people arrested in connection with the plot.

    The Sudanese government routinely accused the Chadian government of supporting JEM rebels, but the accusation has been denied by N'djamena.

    Most of attacks on the government forces and African Union peacekeepers in the restive Darfur in the past months were believed to have been carried out by the JEM.