Fears raised as four AU-UN peacekeepers go missing in Sudan's Darfur region

Four peacekeepers serving with the joint African Union-United Nations force in the western Sudanese region of Darfur have not been seen or heard from in more than 24 hours, sparking serious concerns over the welfare of the group.

The blue helmets were last seen about 4 p.m. local time yesterday as they departed their team site close to Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state. They had been headed on a seven-kilometre journey towards their private accommodation but never reached their destination.

The peacekeeping operation, known as UNAMID, issued a statement today saying it had mobilized its resources in the region, a remote and war-scarred area on the country's western flank, to search for the missing staff.

The mission said it is also working closely with the Sudanese Government and local authorities in a bid to locate the peacekeepers.

“There have been no sightings of our staff and we are deeply concerned for their will-being,” said Ibrahim Gambari, the head of UNAMID and the Joint Special Representative of the AU and UN in Darfur, which has been beset by conflict since 2003. UNAMID has been in place in the region since the start of 2008.

The disappearance of the peacekeepers has occurred as millions of Sudanese go to the polls to vote in the first presidential and parliamentary elections in 24 years. Voting began yesterday and is expected to continue for several days this week.

Last week the European Union announced it was withdrawing its observers from Darfur because of security concerns, and there have been tensions between Government and opposition activists during the election campaign.