The convoy was traveling between the South Darfur state capital Nyala and the North Darfur state capital al-Fashir, the U.N. African Union Mission in Darfur said.

The attackers are believed to have been members of a janjaweed militia, said the mission, created by the U.N. Security Council last year to bring stability to the war-torn region while peace talks on a final settlement continue.

Janjaweed is a blanket term used to describe nomadic, Arabic-speaking African gunmen in Darfur and eastern Chad who the United Nations says generally have a camel herder background.

The janjaweed, blamed for terrorizing local Darfur villages on camels and horseback, are accused of trying to "cleanse" black Africans from Darfur, the BBC reported.