UN continues staff pullout from Darfur
July 16, 2008
Agence-France Press
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KHARTOUM (AFP) — The United Nations was airlifting staff out of Darfur for a second day on Wednesday with peacekeepers on alert following a deadly attack and moves to charge Sudan's president with war crimes.
The relocation operation hit a snag on Tuesday when about 50 people were bused to the airport in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur where the UN-led peacekeeping mission is based, were unable to fly out for technical reasons.
One flight left this morning with the people from last night. Two more flights scheduled for today, said Josephine Guerrero, spokeswoman for the joint African Union-United Nations mission called UNAMID.
At least one flight was bound for Entebbe, Uganda and another for Al-Obeid, the capital of Northern Kordofan in central Sudan.
About 150 staff were scheduled to leave on Wednesday, including those delayed. Thirty-two staff left Nyala, the capital of South Darfur on Tuesday.
The numbers leaving are a fraction of the some 10,000 UNAMID staff deployed the wartorn western region of Sudan. Officals said staff could return within days or weeks if the mission downgrades its security alert.
UNAMID is flying out non-essential staff following months of worsening security despite assurances from Sudan that it would protect peacekeepers.
Officials feared a violent backlash after International Criminal Court chief prosecutor on Monday sought an arrest warrant against Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir on 10 counts including war crimes and genocide in Darfur.
Eight UNAMID peacekeepers died and more than 20 were wounded in an ambush by heavily armed militia on July 8, the deadliest in a series of attacks since the United Nations assumed command of peacekeeping in the region last December.