{Sudan has defended its decision to expel two top United Nations officials, and called on the world body to respect the African country\u2019s sovereignty.}<\/p>\n
UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator at the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Ali al-Za’tari and the UNDP’s Country Director Yvonne Helle were told to leave Sudan for “insulting” the country and being “prejudiced” against its government, Sudan\u2019s Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued on Friday. <\/p>\n
Za’tari, a Jordanian national, was ordered to leave the country for “insulting the Sudanese people and its political leadership in an interview with a Norwegian newspaper,” the statement noted.<\/p>\n
A website close to Sudan’s security organization said earlier this month that Za’tari had criticized Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in an interview with the Bistandsaktuelt newspaper.<\/p>\n
Za’tari confirmed the interview but rejected the comments attributed to him.<\/p>\n
According to the statement, Helle, a Dutch national, was expelled because she was “strongly prejudiced against the Sudanese government” and “treated Sudanese officials with arrogance.”<\/p>\n
Helle had “stopped technical and financial support for a number of projects and strategic plans” without consulting the Sudanese government, the statement said.<\/p>\n
The expulsions come as Sudan’s government is locked in a dispute with the joint UN-African Union Mission in Darfur, known as UNAMID.<\/p>\n
The Sudanese government has already shut UNAMID’s human rights office in the capital city of Khartoum and called on the mission to prepare an exit plan.<\/p>\n
According to official reports, 61 peacekeepers have been killed since the beginning of UNAMID mission in Darfur in 2007.<\/p>\n
Darfur has been the scene of violence since 2003, when rebels took up arms against the government in Khartoum. There has been also tribal fighting in the region.<\/p>\n
The United Nations estimates that more than 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur since the violence began.<\/p>\n
MSM\/AS\/MHB<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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