BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhuanet) -- 7 peacekeepers have been killed and 17 wounded when they came under heavy fire from gunmen in Sudan’s strife-torn Darfur region. It’s the worst death toll from a single incident since the deployment in 2008.

A large group of unknown gunmen attacked a patrol in an area in South Darfur where peacekeeping is the responsibility of Tanzanian forces. Reinforcements managed to rescue the peacekeepers after an "extended firefight".

Two of the 17 wounded soldiers and police officers were female. A UN source said most casualties were probably Tanzanians. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s press office said in a statement that the Secretary-General was "outraged" by the attack. Ban Ki-moon condemned this heinous attack on UNAMID, which is the third in three weeks.

(Source: CNTV.cn)