Rebels release abducted WFP workers in Darfur

DAKAR, Senegal, Sep 2, 2004 (PANA) — The World Food Programme Thursday
announced the release of three of its employees who had been held
captive by rebels in the troubled Darfur region of Sudan.

WFP welcomed the release but condemned the fact that armed groups
were targeting humanitarian workers.

The three WFP staff plus three members of the Sudanese Red
Crescent disappeared in North Darfur late last while en route to
register displaced people.

Their release was secured on Wednesday, following negotiations by
a UN security team with rebels from the Sudan Liberation Army
(SLA) who had abducted them.

The search and rescue operation was aided by the tracking of a
Thuraya satellite telephone belonging to the WFP team, as well as
the HF radio affixed to the WFP vehicle they were driving at the
time of their abduction.

Upon their release, all six people were flown by helicopter to El
Fasher, the capital of North Darfur.

“We are delighted that our people, as well as those working for
the Sudanese Red Crescent, have been freed unharmed,” said WFP
Senior Deputy Executive Director, Jean-Jacques Graisse.

“At a time when all agencies are battling the rainy season, poor
infrastructure and an unpredictable security environment to
deliver desperately needed humanitarian assistance, this kind of
incident can only further worsen the plight of the needy in
Darfur,” Graisse added.

“We call upon all armed groups in the region to stop targeting
those involved in humanitarian work and allow them to do their
duty without fear of intimidation. Any continuation or escalation
of incidents such as the one just resolved is likely to have far-
reaching consequences for the relief operation,” Graisse warned
in a press statement.

The SLA held a large group of aid workers from several UN
agencies and NGOs in North Darfur last June against their will.

Rebels from the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) detained 22
Sudanese health workers near Nyala for several hours on
Wednesday.