A helicopter belonging to the joint United Nations-African Union force in the war-torn western Sudanese region of Darfur was shot at on Monday, but there were no reports of casualties, UNAMID said. "About 30 minutes into the flight and 90 kilometres (60 miles) north-west of Geneina (in West Darfur), the pilot heard shots being fired," spokesman Noureddine Mezni told AFP.
"The pilot aborted the mission and returned to Geneina," he said, adding that no casualties had been reported. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack on the helicopter, which was carrying crew members and one passenger. UNAMID is struggling to deploy adequate troops and air power in Darfur.
The mission took over from a small African Union force last December 31, but only 7,600 troops and 1,500 police have been deployed, barely a third of the projected total of 19,500 soldiers and 6,500 policemen.
The mission says it needs 24 transport and attack helicopters to protect civilians adequately. According to the United Nations, up to 300,000 people have died and more than 2.2 million have fled their homes since the conflict erupted in February 2003. Sudan says 10,000 have been killed.
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