Three policemen killed near North Darfur capital

Three policemen working for the Ministry of Finance were shot dead by gunmen near El Fasher city in North Darfur on Thursday.

The policemen were in a collection point in Jugojugo, 20 kilometres from El Fasher, at the time of the attack at 6am. A resident told Radio Dabanga that an armed group in three vehicles opened fire on the police personnel, seized their weapons, and fled.

Among the dead was sergeant El Rasheed Jaguar. Other wounded policemen were taken to El Fasher hospital. The dead have been buried at the graves of El Mahad district amid the presence of State leadership officials and the public.

Maj. General Abdallah Mohamed Omar, the police chief of North Darfur, said in a press statement that the offenders first asked the policemen to give them water before they suddenly attacked.

Additionally, the Ministry of Finance's information office released a statement claiming that the shooting was committed by gunmen in Land Cruisers. 'Militants who drove the vehicle seized three Kalashnikovs, one Dushka machine gun, but they could not get away with it because it had technical issues.'

The statements did not say whether the vehicles were unlicensed. As of this month, without a license will be confiscated in El Fasher locality, in an attempt by the state to reduce the number of vehicles that have illegally been brought into the state and are often used by bandits.