Rwandan peace keeper dies in Ambush in North Darfur

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the attacks that left one Rwandan peacekeeper dead

A Rwandan peace keeper working under the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) was on Sunday November 24, 2013 killed in an ambush near a place called Kabkabiya, North Darfur.

According to the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) communiqué, The Non-Commissioned Officer serving in Rwanbatt 40 (31 Infantry Battalion) was killed in line of duty, while serving the people of Darfur.

It is reported that the yet-to-be named peacekeeper was with 60 RDF Soldiers escorting a convoy to Kunguru from Kabkabiya when they were ambushed by unidentified armed assailants.

“He heroically confronted the assailants, but was fatally wounded. He was evacuated to Level II Hospital where he unfortunately died,” reads the statement in part.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned attacks against the peacekeeping mission in Darfur and urged the Sudanese government to take swift action to bring the perpetrators of this and previous attacks on UNAMID to justice.

Ban expressed his sincere condolences to the family of the fallen peacekeeper, and to the government of the Republic of Rwanda.

Established by the UN Security Council in 2007, UNAMID is in charge of, among other tasks, the protection of civilians and helping maintain security for humanitarian assistance in Darfur.

Fighting between rebel groups and government forces and allied militia in this area since 2003 has led to the deaths of about 300,000 people and caused nearly two million more to be displaced.