Sudan denies targeting a meeting between UNAMID and Darfur rebel group
March 9, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese army today denied it had attacked an area where representatives from United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) were meeting with Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebels in Darfur.
Earlier today JEM spokesman Ahmed Hussein told Sudan Tribune by phone that the attack took place in the area of Juzminy North of El-Geneina and west of Jebel Moon area.
“This attack is a blatant violation of international law. We condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms” Hussein said.
“We want the UN officials including UNAMID chief Rodolphe Adada and Ameerah Haq to condemn this attack as well. This is not the first time UNAMID gets attacked by government forces” he added.
Another security official told the newspaper from El-Geneina that the UNAMID representatives asked for permission to visit the Jebel Moon area but they advised them that it is “unsafe to do so”.
The official also said that it was JEM forces who attacked the Juzminy area and that JEM has no presence in Jebel Moon.
The JEM spokesman said that attack took place around 10 a.m. Khartoum local time and that a bomb was dropped by the assailants on the runway close to the UNAMID plane.
He said that the attackers came from the town of Suleia which was recently overrun by government forces.
“We repulsed their forces and chased them all the way to Suleia” Hussein added. He said there were no casualties and the meeting proceeded as planned.
(ST)