Russian Helicopter Pilot Rescued After Capture by Darfur Militia, UN Says

A Russian helicopter pilot with the United Nations and African Union joint peacekeeping mission in the Darfur region of Sudan was rescued today after being seized and beaten by a militia group, the UN said.

The United Nations worked with Sudanese government intelligence officials to locate the pilot, spokesman Farhan Haq said in New York. The pilot was then picked up at a designated location and returned safely by helicopter to the town of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, Haq said.

The pilot was transporting three commanders of the Liberty and Justice Movement, a Darfur rebel group, when he landed his helicopter on July 26 in an undesignated area due to bad weather outside Nyala. The rebel commanders were on their way to Doha, the Qatari capital, to participate in peace talks with the Sudanese government, said Chris Cycmanick, a spokesman for the UN in Sudan.

The helicopter, operated by Utair, Russia’s fifth-largest airline, provides services for the joint UN-AU peacekeeping mission in Darfur, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website.

Darfur has been the scene of conflict between the government and rebel groups since 2003. As many as 300,000 people have died, mainly due to illness and starvation, according to UN estimates. Sudanese President Umar al-Bashir’s government puts the death toll at about 10,000.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bill Varner at the United Nations at wvarner@bloomberg.net

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