Malawi Defence Forces (MDF) are for the first time this year sending soldiers to war torn Sudan western region of Darfur on a peace keeping mission, an official from the army has said.
MDF Spokesman Clement Namangale said the southern African country has been sending troops for observer mission in Darfur for the past three years but this will be the first time to send a military contingent.
"Our troops have been on observer mission in Sudan before but this will be the first time to send a battalion of 800 soldiers and we have been preparing for this trip for over a year," said Namangale.
According to the MDF spokesman they will next month send a survey team for a weeklong assessment whose result will determine when the battalion leaves the country.
Namangale said the battalion which will consist of senior officers and down to the junior ranking soldiers, is expected to be stationed in Darfur for about six months.
Thousands of innocent civilians have lost their lives in Darfur while thousands have been displaced due to a conflict others have described as genocide.
The spokesman said the UN inspection team was in Malawi in November last year for the inspection of the battalion and that a second team is expected shortly before the battalion leaves for Sudan.
Malawi soldiers have been on peacekeeping missions in Democratic Republic of Congo(DRC), Burundi and Sierra Leon.
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