A helicopter working for peacekeepers in Darfur crashed on Monday, killing two people, and the mission said it was checking whether the aircraft had come under fire.
The private helicopter, hired by the United Nations-African Union force, came down minutes after leaving the town of Nyala with a crew of four, a spokesperson for the Unamid force said. It crashed near a camp for displaced people in the region of western Sudan.
At least four helicopters in use by the force have been shot at since August, but no casualties have been reported before.
”We are looking into unconfirmed reports there was shooting,” spokesperson Kemal Saiki said.
”Aid workers got to the scene and were able to recover two bodies … They said the two others were presumed inside the wreckage, which was still burning when they got there. But we can not confirm their deaths.”
Saiki said the crash site was near Kalma camp for displaced people, where more than 30 people died last month after armed government security forces raided the settlement, saying they were searching for suspects and weapons.
The Sudanese government says many rebels and bandits use Kalma as a base and weapons store. Residents deny that.
Kalma resident Omar Ali Omar Suleiman told Reuters by phone he heard sounds like shots before the helicopter crashed just north of the settlement, but he could not be certain.
Saiki said four crew were on board the Sudan-registered Mi-8 helicopter. There were no details of the crew’s nationalities.
He added the helicopter had been contracted to transport rations to Unamid bases across Darfur. — Reuters