(UNAMID) will not leave Darfur soon: UN says

December 17, 2014-Khartoum-SudaneseOnline- The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations , Hervé Ladsous, said that the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) will not surrender to the Sudan's request to leave the region soon amid escalating violence there.
In an interview with Reuters on Tuesday, Ladsous that Sudan has asked them to form an exit strategy, stressing that exit was always an objective but Khartoum is doing it with a certain insistence and publicity which is a little bit special.
Following media reports about mass rape in Tabit, a village 45km south-west of North Darfur capital El-Fasher, Sudanese authorities loudly criticized the UNAMID for echoing the news. Also they were angered after remarks by UN officials who called for further investigation mentioning the heavy presence of military and police during the first probe.
Sudan’s President Omer al-Bashir also asked (UNAMID) to leave the country, citing that it had failed to execute its mandate. Al-Bashir said that the mission had become a security burden for the Sudanese Armed Forces, accusing it of supporting rebels in the region.
“We want a clear plan for the exit of UNAMID from Darfur. We have instructed the foreign ministry to work with the UN to end the presence of UNAMID from Darfur,” said the President.

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