Three Unamid troops injured in East Darfur

Three Unamid peacekeepers were wounded in an attack by unidentified gunmen in East Darfur on Saturday. A Unamid official told Sudan Tribune that a group of militiamen ambushed a patrol in Um Zahima valley in the area of Labado in Yassin locality. In the ensuing clash that lasted a quarter of an hour, three Pakistani peacekeepers were injured. They were transported by helicopter to a Unamid medical center in Sigeira, east of Nyala, capital of South Darfur. According to the official, the attackers intended to seize the vehicles of the peacekeepers, but they were forced to flee. The Unamid soldiers managed to control the situation after the clash, adding that they inflicted serious casualties on the assailants without further details. It is the second attack on a Unamid patrol within eight days. On 12 December, gunmen intercepted two Unamid vehicles in Khor Abeche, South Darfur. They stripped the peacekeepers of all their weapons and belongings, and took the cars with them to an unknown destination. The Sudanese president announced at a press conference in Khartoum on 30 November that he wants Unamid to leave the country, as the peacekeeping mission in Darfur, “has become security burden” on the Sudan Armed Forces. “Instead of offering the Sudanese army support in protecting the civilians in the region, they are protecting the rebels,” he said.Source: Sudan Tribune, Radio Dabanga File photo: A Unamid patrol in Um Keddada, North Darfur (Albert González Farran/Unamid) Related:Unamid patrol ambushed in South Darfur (15 December 2014)Unamid’s exit from Darfur supported by Russia, opposed by displaced, rebels (4 December 2014)