El Geneina, April 12(Darfur 24)
The United Nations World Food Program WFP confirmed that the procedures for transporting a helicopter from El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur State, to Chad were official and facilitated by the local authorities.
The World Food Program Sudan office said in a tweet on the “X” platform that the recent video clip that was published on the Internet of a helicopter bearing the trademark of the United Nations World Food Program being transported by land from El Geneina, West Darfur, was an official operation facilitated by the local authorities in coordination. With the World Food Programme, noting that the helicopter arrived at a safe place in Chad.
Two days ago, residents of West Darfur state circulated pictures and video clips, showing a disassembled plane loaded into trucks bearing the logo of the United Nations World Food Programme, and it was claimed that it was transported from the capital, Khartoum.
“Darfur 24” obtained a document issued by the World Food Program entitled “To Whom It May Concern” and delivered to the Humanitarian Aid Commission in West Darfur State, requesting that it be granted permission to export a helicopter that had been sitting at El Geneina Airport since the outbreak of the war to Chad.
The document said that the “UNO613H” helicopter, model “Mi-8MTV reg. UR-APR, which is managed by a Ukrainian company, had a contract with the Food Program in Sudan, and was suspended following the crisis that erupted on April 15, 2023.
In the document, the program requested permission to export the helicopter in a disassembled state by truck to Chad, with the aim of assembling and recovering it.
In a statement to Darfur 24, Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Abu al-Qasim Ahmed Ali said that the government authorities allowed the transfer of disassembled parts of a World Food Program helicopter that had been stationed at El Geneina Airport for more than a year.
Abu Al-Qasim pointed out that the state government, after consulting with the official authorities, allowed the engineering team to enter to carry out dismantling procedures in preparation for transporting it to Chad.