Peacekeeper Killed, Three Wounded in Sudan's Darfur
A Rwandan peacekeeper has been killed and three others wounded in a gun battle after trying to mediate a tribal dispute in Sudan's Darfur region, the African Union-U.N. mission said on Saturday.
"As a result of the ensuing fighting, four Rwandan peacekeepers were injured and, unfortunately, one of them died from his wounds," UNAMID said in a statement.
One of the wounded peacekeepers is in a critical condition, it said.
The incident occurred on Saturday morning in Kebkabiya, about 140 kilometers (87 miles) west of El Fasher, the North Darfur state capital.
After altercations between non-Arab Fur people from one village and an Arab militia from another community, a UNAMID team attended a mediation session in an effort to ease tensions.
"The Arab militia elements, nevertheless, became hostile towards UNAMID peacekeepers and started shooting at them, at which point the peacekeepers returned fire," the mission said.
"The fighting left an unconfirmed number of casualties among the assailants."
UNAMID chief Mohamed Ibn Chambas condemned the "heinous criminal act in the strongest possible terms.”
He said the peacekeepers "were trying to mediate the dispute in good faith and regrettably their efforts went unappreciated."
UNAMID members have increasingly become a target of violence which has worsened in Darfur over the past 18 months.
There were 16 fatal attacks against UNAMID last year, resulting in "significant loss of vehicles, weapons and ammunition," a February report by U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said.
A separate U.N. panel of experts said "Janjaweed groups," or ethnic Arab militias, almost certainly played a leading role in two of the major fatal attacks, with robbery the likely motive.
But Sudan's government has said it was impossible that militia close to the regime had attacked peacekeepers.
Source: Agence France Presse
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