HASKANITA, Sudan — Armed men killed at least 10 African Union soldiers and seriously wounded seven others, leaving behind charred armored vehicles and bombed-out barracks in the deadliest strike against peacekeeping troops since they deployed in Sudan’s Darfur region in 2004.
More than 30 AU troops remained missing late Sunday, but it was unclear whether the missing soldiers had been captured or simply had scattered in the chaos.
A faction of Darfur rebels was believed responsible for the assault, which began shortly after sunset Saturday. Rebel groups had been fighting Sudanese government troops nearby in recent days.
At least 30 vehicles and about 1,000 gunmen swarmed the AU base in the Darfur town of Haskanita early Sunday, setting fire to vehicles, ransacking tents and escaping with weapons, nearly a dozen trucks and other supplies, officials said.
“They nearly destroyed the camp,” AU spokesman Noureddine Mezni said. “Everyone is shocked.”
“We battled for hours, but when we ran out of ammunition, we took refuge in this ditch,” said a Nigerian peacekeeper who would only give his first name, Aboubakar. He showed a corner of the camp riddled with bullet marks and mortar holes where the AU troops mounted their resistance.
The rebels used armored vehicles and rocket-propelled grenades, an indication that they are more heavily armed than previously believed, peacekeepers said.
The Sudanese army routed the rebels early Sunday and the remaining AU peacekeepers were evacuated under the protection of the army. By afternoon, some government troops could be seen plundering goods from the burned-out camp as an AU armored vehicle smoldered nearby.
As peace remains elusive in Darfur, more than a dozen rebel groups with various agendas and philosophies are now competing for power and recognition.
Two years ago, there were two main rebel groups in western Sudan. The bloodshed marked the latest breakdown in efforts to negotiate a cease-fire in advance of peace talks scheduled for later this month in Libya.
U.N. officials vowed to carry on with plans to dispatch 26,000 blue-helmeted peacekeepers later this year or next year to assist the beleaguered 7,000-soldier AU force.
Since the start of the Darfur conflict in 2003, rebel groups typically have armed themselves by attacking Sudanese government troops and stealing guns and supplies.
Over the past year, however, rebel groups also have targeted peacekeepers and even aid agencies in their search for money, supplies and vehicles.
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