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Second plane with Russian peacekeepers on its way to Sudan

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MOSCOW, May 4 (RIA Novosti) - A second aircraft with Russian peacekeepers on board has left for Sudan to join UN troops, the Russian Air Force said Thursday.

"The plane took off at 20.15 from Migalovo airport near Tver," the head of the Air Force press service said.

The first group of Russian peacekeepers flew to the North African country April 20. They will join the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) in late May.

The Il-76 aircraft will deliver some 30 metric tons of special and technical equipment to Juba airport, as well as about 10 peacekeepers.

Major General Viktor Ivanov, head of the Air Force Army Aviation Directorate, said earlier that the peacekeepers would not be involved in combat missions.

The press service said another two planes would deliver some 60 tons of technical cargo and around 20 people on May 5.

A 21-year bloody civil war ended in Sudan after the Muslim-dominated north and Christians and animists in the south concluded a peace deal in 2005.

On March 24, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1663 extending the UNMIS mandate until September 26, 2006.

Before the first group of Russian peacekeepers was sent to Sudan, UNMIS included 14 Russian military observers and 19 civilian police officers.

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