KHARTOUM: Four civilians were killed as Sudanese forces recaptured a strategic rebel-held town in southern Darfur, peacekeepers said yesterday after the UN called for access to help thousands of affected civilians.
Government forces “have taken control of Labado town... after fierce fighting, which resulted in the death of four civilians and the wounding of six others,” said Aicha Elbasri, spokeswoman for the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID).
The Sudan Liberation Army’s Minni Minnawi faction claimed last morning to have resisted a government counter-attack on Labado, maintaining their hold on the town and a second community, Muhagiriya.
Ten days ago they began an unusual occupation of the area about 100km east of the South Darfur state capital Nyala, Sudan’s second city.
Darfur’s insurgents normally stage hit-and-run attacks.
“The situation in and around Muhagiriya town, East Darfur, though relatively calm, remains tense,” Elbasri said. Thousands of civilians had sought shelter around peacekeepers’ camps in the district since the initial fighting began on April 6.Reuters
