AU military observers in Sudan’s Darfur probe attack on helicopter

ABUJA, Dec 20 (AFP) — The African Union observer force in the war-torn western Sudanese province of Darfur has launched an investigation into an attack on one of its helicopters, AU spokesman Assane Ba said.

Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the aircraft at 1545 GMT on Sunday as it flew over the southern Darfur town of Labado to monitor fighting between government forces and the region’s rebel movements, Ba said.

The chopper was not damaged and there were no injuries, but the mission was aborted and flew back to the AU force’s operating base in El-Fasher, he said.

“An investigation is under way to see who shot at our helicopter. Whoever it was, this is unacceptable,” Ba told reporters in Abuja, where AU mediators are struggling to get a stalled Darfur peace conference back on track.

Talks in Abuja broke down last week after the Sudanese government breached an African union-brokered ceasefire deal and ordered an attack on Labado by a large contingent of soldiers and allied Janjaweed militia.

On Sunday, following massive international pressure, Khartoum announced that it was calling off the offensive, but AU diplomats told AFP that reports from the field had said that fighting was continuing.