Three peacekeepers wounded in Zalingei western Darfur shooting: UN

(AFP) – Saturday, 17 October 2009:

KHARTOUM — Three peacekeepers were wounded, two of them seriously, when their vehicle came under fire in the Darfur region of western Sudan on Saturday, officials of the UN-African Union peace mission said.

The four-wheel-drive with five Nigerian policemen on board came under fire near Zalingei, in western Darfur, a senior official said, asking not to be named.

"Three of the policemen were wounded, two of them seriously. They were evacuated by helicopter to Nyala hospital and are now in stable condition," the source said.

Kemal Saiki, communications chief of the joint United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), confirmed three members of the police force who carry arms were wounded, but without giving their nationality.

The police were escorting a UNAMID garbage truck when it came under attack by unknown gunmen, who made off with the four-wheel-drive.

"We don't know yet if it was a carjacking or a direct attack" on UNAMID, said Saiki, adding the incident was being investigated.

Two civilian employees of UNAMID were kidnapped in late August in the same area of Zalingei and are still in the hands of their abductors, who the Sudanese authorities have branded as criminals.