More UN staff quit Darfur
2008-07-16 11:07
Khartoum - The United Nations was airlifting staff out of Darfur for a second day on Wednesday with peacekeepers on alert after a deadly attack and moves to charge Sudan's president with war crimes.
The "relocation" operation hit a snag on Tuesday after about 50 people bussed to the airport in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, where the UN-led peacekeeping mission was 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, spokesperson 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.
Officials fear violent backlash
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 were a fraction of the some 10 000 UNAMID staff deployed the wartorn western region of Sudan. Officials said staff could return within days or weeks if the mission downgraded its security alert.
UNAMID was flying out non-essential staff after 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 08, the deadliest in a series of attacks since the UN assumed command of peacekeeping in the region last December.