KHARTOUM, Sudan, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- The head of U.N. peacekeeping operations in Sudan's Darfur region said she was "dismayed" by reports that violence there left at least 13 people dead.
The hybrid U.N.-African Union assistance mission in Darfur said it was turned away from a checkpoint by Sudanese authorities after it sent a team to investigate reports of an attack in Darfur. UNAMID said it received reports that 13 people died in the latest violence.
Aichatou Mindaoudou, acting special envoy for the mission, said attacks on civilians constitute serious crimes.
"I am dismayed by these deaths and very concerned over the repeated incidents that have led to the killing, injury of the local population, as well as their displacement," she said in a statement.
In late October, a South African member of UNAMID was killed when gunmen ambushed a patrol near Darfur. UNAMID didn't offer any indication of who was responsible for the attacks but said insecurity in the region was primarily the result of inter-communal violence and clashes between government forces and armed groups.
Last month, UNAMID said Khartoum agreed to peace talks with the rebel Justice and Equality Movement.
