KHARTOUM, Sudan - The Sudanese government said Saturday that rebels from Darfur killed 41 of its soldiers in a raid outside the region, adding to fears that the conflict is spilling into the rest of Sudan.
The raid on a police garrison in neighboring West Kordofan Province Wednesday has been claimed by both the Sudanese Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement, the two main rebel movements fighting the government in Darfur for the past three years.
"There were 41 martyrs in the area," said the police statement carried by the Sudan Media Center, a news service close to the government. Rebels targeted civil institutions, medical centers and development projects, the statement said.
Local residents contacted by The Associated Press by phone, however, said that the death toll was closer to 58 people.
Rebels have claimed they held the town for several hours, while the military maintained the attack was ultimately repulsed.
The U.N. mission in Sudan said Thursday that the violence threatened to further destabilize the country.
The African Union Mission to Sudan also denounced the raid.
The conflict has claimed 200,000 lives and displaced at least 2.5 million people in the three provinces of Darfur since ethnic African rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated central government in 2003, accusing it of discrimination.
Khartoum is accused of retaliating by unleashing janjaweed militias, which are blamed for the worst atrocities against civilians.
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