Sudan asks UN mission in Darfur to prepare to leave

Sudan has asked the joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur to prepare to leave, a senior official said amid a dispute between the United Nations and Khartoum over an alleged mass rape in the region.

Sudan initially refused to let the UNAMID peacekeepers visit a village to investigate the rape allegations. They were later allowed in and found no evidence that Sudanese troops had raped about 200 women and girls there, but UNAMID complained of a heavy military presence during interviews. "Sudan formally requested - I formally requested - that UNAMID make an exit strategy. That does not mean it will pack up its things and say goodbye," Foreign Ministry under-secretary Abdallah al-Azraq told reporters.