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Sudan hijackers 'free' passengers Sudan hijackers 'free' passengers
(20 minutes later)
The hijackers of a Sudanese plane flown to Libya have started to free some of the women and children on board, Libyan officials say. The hijackers of a Sudanese plane flown to Libya have started to free some of the passengers, Libyan officials say.
The Sun Air Boeing 737 was carrying some 95 passengers when it was seized shortly after taking off from the Darfur town of Nyala.The Sun Air Boeing 737 was carrying some 95 passengers when it was seized shortly after taking off from the Darfur town of Nyala.
The pilot had said that some passengers had fainted after the air-conditioning failed in Libya's desert town of Kufra.The pilot had said that some passengers had fainted after the air-conditioning failed in Libya's desert town of Kufra.
He said the hijackers were Darfur rebels but this has been denied. He said the hijackers - who had asked for fuel to fly to France - were Darfur rebels but this has been denied.
The plane was on its way to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, when a man with a knife hijacked it, a Sudanese security official was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.The plane was on its way to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, when a man with a knife hijacked it, a Sudanese security official was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.
The hijackers have asked for fuel to fly the plane to France.
The plane initially tried to land in Cairo, Egypt, where it was denied permission to land.The plane initially tried to land in Cairo, Egypt, where it was denied permission to land.
Sudanese officials say the hijackers belong to one of the numerous rebel groups fighting in Darfur.
The director of the Kufra airport told the Libyan news agency Jana that the hijackers, who number 10 or more, had told the pilot they were from the rebel Sudanese Liberation Army of Abdel Wahid Mohammed Nur.
Mr Nur, who is based in Paris, has strongly denied any involvement in the hijacking.
A five-year conflict in Darfur has left about 200,000 people dead and more than two million homeless.A five-year conflict in Darfur has left about 200,000 people dead and more than two million homeless.
The desert oasis of Kufra is in a remote region approximately 1,700km (1,050 miles) south of the Libyan capital, Tripoli.The desert oasis of Kufra is in a remote region approximately 1,700km (1,050 miles) south of the Libyan capital, Tripoli.
It is an area close to both the Sudanese and Chadian borders, and is often used as a corridor for humanitarian aid for displaced Darfuri refugees in Chad, as well as a transit point into the country by illegal immigrants, says the BBC's Rana Jawad, in Tripoli.It is an area close to both the Sudanese and Chadian borders, and is often used as a corridor for humanitarian aid for displaced Darfuri refugees in Chad, as well as a transit point into the country by illegal immigrants, says the BBC's Rana Jawad, in Tripoli.