Ethiopia condemns slaying of peacekeepers in Darfur
Tesfa-Alem Tekle
October 18, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA) – Ethiopia condemned “in the strongest terms” a deadly attack carried out against peacekeepers of the African Union-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID).
According to UNAMID, two of the peacekeepers were killed instantly after they came under attack by unknown gunmen. The third Ethiopian peacekeepers shortly died of its wounds.
The Ethiopian ministry of foreign affairs in a statement released on Friday evening “conveyed its deepest condolences to the families of the fallen peacekeepers and to the people of Ethiopia”.
Ethiopian officials at the foreign ministry were unavailable for further comments.
The UN condemned Thursday’s attack and called on the Sudanese government to quickly investigate the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice.
“The secretary-general underscores that attacks on UN peacekeepers are unacceptable and constitute a serious violation of international law,” UN chief Ban Ki-moon said in a statement issued after the deadly incident.
The UN Security Council (UNSC) also condemned “in the strongest terms” the slaying of the Ethiopian peacekeepers, and called on the Sudanese government to “swiftly to investigate the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice”.
UNAMID said they informed the Sudanese foreign ministry of the attack, but that Khartoum had not yet reacted to the incident.
Over 60 peacekeepers had been killed in the troubled Darfur region since the mission was launched by the UNSC in 2007.
The mission is tasked with protectig civilians and helping ensure the provision of humanitarian assistance to conflict-affected people.
Fighting between the different rebel groups and government forces along with its allied militia has reportedly claimed the lives of an estimated 300,000 people and displaced nearly two million during over the decade-long civil war.
(ST)