UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has thanked Russian and Sudanese governments for their help in securing the release of two UN contractors, who were abducted in Sudan four months ago, a UN statement said Saturday.
"The Secretary-General is deeply gratified by the release today of two United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) contractors," the UN said, adding Ban "expresses his appreciation to the Governments of Sudan and Russia in securing their safe release."
The two men, a manager and a technician, were employed by Russian UTair airline and contracted by the African Union-UN peacekeeping mission (UNAMID).
The Darfur province has been the epicentre of violent clashes between Sudanese government troops and rebels since 2003.
