Darfur JEM claims shooting down a Sudanese army helicopter

June 2, 2010 (PARIS) — The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) said on Wednesday that they had shot down a Sudanese Apache army helicopter near South Darfur capital town of Nyala yesterday killing five of its crew.

There was no independent verification by Darfur’s joint U.N./AU UNAMID peacekeeping force or the Sudanese army over claims made by JEM.

The military spokesperson of JEM Ali Alwafi also said in the statement that they captured more than a dozen anti-tank and anti-aircraft rocket launchers as well as 40 Land Cruisers in a battle with government forces on Monday. Alwafi further said that they destroyed two army tanks and dozens of vehicles.

The frequency of clashes between JEM and Sudanese government forces have increased dramatically particularly after breakdown in Qatari-sponsored peace talks between the two sides. The rebel group accused Khartoum of violating a framework agreement signed earlier this year calling for a cessation of hostilities.

The matters were complicated by Sudan announcing that it no longer has plans to negotiate with JEM and will instead seek to prosecute their leaders after issuing notices for them through the Interpol.

Since the conflict in Darfur began in 2003, some 2.7 million people have fled their homes and the UN says about 300,000 more have died.

The government says such figures are a massive exaggeration and denies claims that it backed Arab militias accused of ethnic cleansing against black African groups in Darfur.

(ST)