Sudan summons UNAMID over last week ambush

March 10, 2010 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese government expressed today its irritation over humanitarian assessment mission conducted last week by the hybrid operation in South Darfur saying the peacekeepers didn’t observe its advice.

The foreign ministry on Wednesday summoned, Deputy chief of the UNAMID for operations, Mohamed Younis, to inform him about government concern over the behavior of the UNAMID forces in Jebel Marra and its movements without giving regard to advices of the Army, the official SUNA reported today.

Unidentified armed men ambushed a UNAMID patrol in Jebel Marra on Friday March 5 and released them twenty four hours later after robbing their vehicles, equipments, personals belongings and money. Also, a peacekeeper was shot in the head by the attackers during the ambush but was saved by his helmet and only suffered a minor injury.

The 60-member patrol was in the area of Deribat in South Darfur, to assess the humanitarian situation, following reports about heavy fighting between the Sudanese army and SLA-led by Abdel Wahid Al-Nur that triggered displacement of thousands of civilians.

The acting undersecretary of the foreign ministry, Ambassador Haidar Haj Al-Siddiq, asked the UNAMID deputy chief to clarify the circumstances of the attack. He also requested to form a joint fact-finding mission to investigate the ambush.

The rebel SLA-AW denied being behind the attack it further pointed accusing finger to the government supported militiamen operating in the area.

The Sudanese official also asked the hybrid mission to move a Nigerian battalion out of the area of Jebel Marra and to replace it by another one. The Sudanese request suggests that the government suspect the peacekeepers of cooperation with assailants.

Last month Sudanese army said UNAMID willingly supplied the rebel Justice and Equality Movement with food and fuel.

The Sudanese army said that JEM hijacked six trucks belonging to UNAMID, after which the peacekeepers did not report the incident to authorities. He also claimed that on January 25 another two trucks loaded with 70 barrels of fuel had gone missing.

(ST)