© www.un.orgUNAMID peacekeeper troops in East Darfur.
Two peacekeepers serving in the joint United Nations-African Union force in Sudan's troubled Darfur region were killed in an attack, and a third later died from his injuries, the U.N. secretary-general said Thursday.
Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the attack and said it has been
"a bloody October for U.N. peacekeeping," with 14 peacekeepers killed this month in Darfur, Mali and the Central African Republic. This amounts to "nearly one per day," he told reporters.
The Ethiopian soldiers were guarding a water borehole in Korma, North Darfur, when they came under attack by a group of unidentified armed men, Ashraf Eissa, the spokesman for the joint mission in Darfur, said by telephone.
"This highlights the exceptionally challenging environments in which today's peacekeepers operate," Ban said.
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In a statement, Abidoun Bashua, acting Joint Special Representative of the mission, said the attack was reported to the Sudanese foreign minister and called on Sudan's government to act swiftly to bring the attackers to justice. He said an
attack on peacekeepers is a war crime.Rebel groups have been fighting in the vast western region of Sudan for more than a decade, and the security situation has worsened this year. The U.N. says 61 peacekeepers have been killed in Darfur since the start of the mission in 2007.
Comment: The African Union - United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) is a joint African Union and United Nations peacekeeping mission formally approved by a UN Security Council resolution in 2007 to bring stability to the Darfur region of Sudan while peace talks on a final settlement continue. Seven years later, the need for this peacekeeping mission is still in play. During this span of time, approximately 385,000 people have been displaced due to the ongoing conflict begun in 2003.
UNAMID has the protection of civilians as its core mandate, but is also tasked with contributing to security for humanitarian assistance, monitoring and verifying implementation of agreements, and assisting an inclusive political process aimed at ending the conflict that erupted in the Darfur region of Sudan over 10 years ago.
It is also tasked with contributing to the promotion of human rights and the rule of law, and monitoring and reporting on the situation along the borders with Chad and the Central African Republic.
Nearly one peacekeeper has died per day this October. The price of peace?
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/f325037a821f42ca9c52b7e5147f0e92/un-chief-2-peacekeepers-killed-darfur
Comment: The African Union - United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) is a joint African Union and United Nations peacekeeping mission formally approved by a UN Security Council resolution in 2007 to bring stability to the Darfur region of Sudan while peace talks on a final settlement continue. Seven years later, the need for this peacekeeping mission is still in play. During this span of time, approximately 385,000 people have been displaced due to the ongoing conflict begun in 2003.
UNAMID has the protection of civilians as its core mandate, but is also tasked with contributing to security for humanitarian assistance, monitoring and verifying implementation of agreements, and assisting an inclusive political process aimed at ending the conflict that erupted in the Darfur region of Sudan over 10 years ago.
It is also tasked with contributing to the promotion of human rights and the rule of law, and monitoring and reporting on the situation along the borders with Chad and the Central African Republic.
Nearly one peacekeeper has died per day this October. The price of peace?
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/f325037a821f42ca9c52b7e5147f0e92/un-chief-2-peacekeepers-killed-darfur