Reuters: UN chief protests Sudan arrests, beatings of staff

UN chief protests Sudan arrests, beatings of staff

By Evelyn Leopold
Reuters
Wednesday, January 24, 2007; 5:33 PM

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon protested the arrests and
beatings of U.N. and other relief staff in Darfur, a U.N. spokesman said on Wednesday,
days before talks with Sudan on a beefed-up peacekeeping force.

Ban criticized the arrests as well as the recent Sudanese bombardment of Darfur towns
to Mutrif Siddig, Khartoum's visiting undersecretary in the Foreign Affairs Ministry,
on Tuesday before leaving for Europe and an African Union meeting on a long-delayed
U.N. peacekeeping mission for Darfur.

It was Ban's first public comment since Darfur police and security officials on Friday
arrested 20 U.N., African Union and other aid workers at a social gathering in Nyala.

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Ban also was "deeply disturbed" by aerial bombardments in North Darfur and "alarmed
by reports of many civilian casualties," Haq said. The African Union, which has some
7,000 soldiers and monitors in Darfur has confirmed rebel reports that the government
bombarded their positions in Anka and Korma on January 16 and 19.

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Last Updated: Wednesday, 24 January 2007, 18:54 GMT

Sudan leader admits Darfur raids

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has confirmed that government forces have
been bombing northern areas of the troubled Darfur region.

In an interview with the BBC Arabic Service, Mr Bashir said the action did not
breach a UN-brokered ceasefire signed earlier this month.

He said the government had no option but to use its armed forces in response to
attacks by rebel groups.

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