Stefan
UN Team Leader
Posts: 10
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Post by Stefan on May 22, 2011 14:47:52 GMT -5
A southern military spokesman told the BBC the North had attacked the area with 5,000 troops, killing civilians and southern soldiers.
South Sudan is due to become independent in July, but Abyei's status remains to be determined after a referendum on its future was shelved.
The UN has called for an end to fighting between the two sides.
Some 20,000 people, almost the whole population of the town, have fled, aid agency Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has told the BBC.
Spokesman Raphael Gorgeu said residents had moved to Agok, about 45km (28 miles) south of Abyei, and were fleeing further south.
He said 42 people wounded in the fighting in Abyei had been treated at a local MSF hospital.
The seizure of Abyei followed two days of skirmishes, artillery fire and at least one air raid.
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