Rwandan peacekeeper killed in Darfur ambush

A Rwandan peacekeeper serving under the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (Unamid) succumbed to injuries on Sunday after gunmen ambushed a Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) escort convoy.This is the first incident involving a Rwandan peacekeeper in about two years. Attacks on peacekeepers in the Sudanese region of Darfur have escalated in the recent past.A statement by the RDF indicates that the fallen soldier, whose name is yet to be released, was together with 60 other RDF peacekeepers, escorting a convoy to Kunguru from Kabkabiya, North Darfur, when they were ambushed.“The non-commissioned officer serving in Rwanbatt 40 (31 Infantry Battalion) was killed in the line of duty. He was serving the people of Darfur through UNAMID. We offer condolences to family, fellow peacekeepers in UNAMID and friends,” Brig. Gen. Joseph Nzabamwita, Defence and Military Spokesperson said yesterday.The RDF said the fallen peacekeeper was evacuated to Level II Hospital but had already succumbed to injuries.The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, condemned the attack and sent his condolences to the bereaved family.“I condemn the attack on UNAMID and I am calling upon the government of Sudan to take swift action and bring the perpetrators to justice,” Ban said in a statement yesterday.UN reports indicate that at least 12 UN-African Union peacekeepers have been killed in the war-torn Sudanese region in the past five months.The region has been in conflict for decades and at least 300,000 people have died in the last ten years. The latest uprising is blamed on two rival Arab tribes within the region.Attackers swooped on a UN water convoy last month and killed three Senegalese peacekeepers and a military observer from Zambia.In July, seven Tanzanian soldiers and a Sierra Leone police officer were killed in an attack near the Darfur city of Nyala, while four humanitarian workers have also been killed in the region this year.Rwanda is the sixth major Troop and Police Contributing Country in the world, with over 4,000 peacekeepers, 400 policemen and 13 military observers in seven UN Missions, including UNAMID.The UN-African Union mission has more than 25,000 troops and police in Darfur.

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Rwandan peacekeeper killed in Darfur ambush