Incident: Abduction, Sudan

Gunmen were reported to have abducted eight French humanitarian workers in Darfur. The French aid group Action Against Hunger (ACF) later denied Sudanese media reports that staff members had been kidnapped. It did say a security incident involving a convoy had occurred, and two of six vehicles were seized.

Not referring to this particular incident, but keep in mind that NGOs can be just as deft as governments when it comes to putting spin on security incidents. Lots of incidents are never publicly reported and for the ones that do receive attention, details are often swept under the carpet. Image, from both a public and donor perspective, is usually fiercely protected. Sometimes at the expense of future operational security.