Four Nigerian peacekeepers killed in Darfur ambush

Four Nigerian soldiers serving in the joint UN-African Union peacekeeping mission (Unamid) in Sudan's western Darfur region were killed Tuesday night and eight others wounded in an ambush.The joint mission spokesman said yesterday the troops were attacked near the mission headquarters in the town of Geneina. A patrol by the Nigerian contingent walked into the ambush, just two kilometres from mission headquarters when their convoy came under fire from several directions. The mission has been underway for over four years with about 22,000 troops, the largest contingent coming from Nigeria.The identities of the slain soldiers were not immediately disclosed, but the latest killing contradicts assertions by the Sudanese Ambassador to Nigeria Dr. Tagelsir Mahgoub Ali who said in a recent interview with Daily Trust that the crisis in Darfur had subsided to merit suggestions for a systematic pull out of the peacekeeping force there.The ambassador said the conflict had come to a stage where there ought to be a re-think on the mission in Darfur. But 78 Unamid troops have been killed since its mandate started five years ago.The joint mission however urged the Sudanese government to prosecute the killers who are yet to be found.
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