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Seven U.N. Peacekeepers Killed In Darfur Attack

Peacekeepers of the joint African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) in 2012.
AFP
/
AFP/Getty Images
Peacekeepers of the joint African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) in 2012.

Unidentified attackers ambushed and killed seven United Nations peacekeepers in Sudan's southern Darfur region, the single-deadliest attack on the international force during its five years of deployment there.

The United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur, or UNAMID, force engaged in an "extended firefight" with the assailants near Khor Abeche in south Darfur, Reuters said, quoting the peacekeeping force.

The Associated Press reports quotes U.N. forces spokesman Chris Cycmanick as saying the fight involved gunfire and possibly rocket-propelled grenades.

Cycmanick said 17 other U.N. workers were wounded in the attack, but he declined to give the nationalities of the killed or wounded soldiers.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

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Scott Neuman is a reporter and editor, working mainly on breaking news for NPR's digital and radio platforms.