The UN Security Council condemned on Wednesday 'in the strongest terms' the killing of seven peacekeepers in northern Darfur, calling the attack 'pre-meditated, deliberate and intended to inflict casualties.'

The ambush and attack on July 8 against the joint UN-African Union mission in Darfur (UNAMID) was the most severe since the forced began deploying six months ago. The attack injured 22 other peacekeepers, seven of them seriously.

The attack was carried out by 200 militiamen on horses, backed by 40 vehicles mounted with sophisticated weaponry, the council said in a statement at the end of a closed-door session in which it discussed a new, one-year mandate for UNAMID beginning on August 1.

Diplomats said the 15-nation council has agreed to the new mandate, which should be voted on before July 31.