NYALA, Sudan, Oct. 7 A town in Darfur controlled by the Sudanese government has been looted and burned to the ground by unknown forces, the United Nations said Sunday.
A statement from the U.N. mission in Sudan said only a few buildings survived the massive fire in the government-controlled town, the BBC reported.
"The market area had been looted. Few civilians had returned in search of food and water," the U.N. statement added.
The town is located near the African Union peacekeeping base that was the target of a rebel assault last week. The Sept. 29 attack killed 10 peace keepers and, according to the U.N. statement, drove much of region's civilian population out of the area.
To date, the four-year-long conflict in Darfur has resulted in the deaths of 200,000 people and has forced more than 2 million civilians to leave their homes behind.
The BBC said the African Union and the United Nations have plans to deploy 26,000 troops to the troubled region in an attempt to stop that disturbing trend.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
