US Diplomat Killed in Sudan Shooting

Jan 1, 2008, 9:27 AM EST

By MOHAMED OSMAN Associated Press Writer

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) --

An American diplomat and his driver were shot to death Tuesday in the Sudanese capital, the U.S. Embassy said, a day after a joint African Union-United Nations force took over peacekeeping in Sudan's (oil & uranium-rich) Darfur region.

It was not immediately known if the attack had a political motive or was a random crime. Though Darfur, far to the west, is engulfed in violence, the Sudanese capital and its surroundings rarely see political violence or attacks.

The Sudanese driver was killed immediately, and the American died of his injuries within hours, officials said.

"This afternoon, the American officer succumbed to his injuries and passed away," said Walter Braunohler, the spokesman at the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum.

Braunohler said the diplomat, whose name was not released, worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry identified the wounded American as a humanitarian aid official and said he was shot five times in the hand, shoulder and belly. The diplomat underwent surgery following the attack, according to the ministry's statement.

The ministry identified the Sudanese driver who was killed as 40-year-old Abdul Rahman Abbas and said the attack occurred around 4 a.m. local time as the car was heading to a western suburb of Sudan's capital, Khartoum.

Both U.S. and Sudanese officials said they were investigating but could not yet provide details on the circumstances surrounding the attack.

Crime is fairly high in Khartoum, Sudan's capital, although much lower than in other east African cities like Nairobi, Kenya.

On Monday, a joint peacekeeping force took over in Darfur - a long-awaited change that is intended to be the strongest effort yet to solve the world's worst humanitarian crisis but which already is struggling. Also Monday, President Bush signed legislation to allow states and local governments to cut investment ties with Sudan because of the bloodshed in Darfur.

At the same time, the Sudanese government often drums up anti-Western sentiment in the state media, often accusing the West of seeking to re-colonize Sudan using Darfur as a pretext.

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