South African peacekeeping troops ambushed in Darfur

Unidentified gunmen ambushed South African peacekeeping troops in Darfur, Sudan on Sunday, killing one soldier and wounded another, authorities said.

"At this stage we are not in a position to release the personal details of the soldier in question, I can only confirm that one of our troops has been killed when they were ambushed,"said Brigadier General Xolani Mabanga of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).

Another soldier was wounded badly and is currently receiving medical care in Darfur, he said.

Mabanga refused to give further details about the attackers who carried out the ambush.

The troops are in the region as part UN-African Union peacekeeping mission.

This came three days after the SANDF announced the withdrawal of some of its members from the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) because of ill discipline.

The members were found to have acted in a manner that compromised the security of SANDF members deployed in the area by breaching or violating the SANDF Military Discipline Supplementary Measures Act and Code of Conduct as well as United Nations Code of Conduct for Peacekeepers, the SANDF said.

The members will face military judicial system as soon as all necessary administration and processes have been finalised.

The SANDF strongly condemned any acts of ill-discipline by its members and will take necessary steps to ensure that corrective measures are taken accordingly.

Source: XINHUA