KHARTOUM, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Eight people were killed in a shoot-out between Sudanese government forces and former rebels in the Darfur town of Nyala, a day before it was visited by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, officials said on Wednesday. Shooting broke out between fighters loyal to the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) of Minni Arcua Minnawi and government personnel late on Tuesday, said a diplomatic source who asked not to be named. The United Nations confirmed it received reports of fighting in downtown Nyala soon after 9 p.m. local time on Tuesday night. "The reports are that eight people in total were killed and there was an unspecified number of people injured," said a U.N. spokeswoman. "The reports were that the fighting was between SLM Minni Minnawi and the government." She added it was unclear whether it was the police or the army that was involved on the government side. No one was available for comment from Sudan's armed forces. The SLM Minnawi faction was the only Darfur rebel group to sign a peace deal with Sudan's government last year. But relations between the faction and the authorities have deteriorated. The SLM-Minnawi faction last month accused Khartoum of arming and training forces of a tribal militia who have killed 170 civilians in South Darfur. Khartoum denied the charges. The confrontation happened just ahead of a visit to the South Darfur capital by anti-apartheid hero Tutu, who was touring Darfur with a party of elder statesman. It was the second violent incident reported in recent days in the town which in the past was seen as a relatively secure base for aid workers and Darfuris. The United Nations reported that armed men seized two aid workers and hijacked their vehicle on Sunday, just 20 metres (66 feet) from their agency's base in Nyala. The two workers were released on Tuesday, one with a severe head wound. Two aid vehicles were also hijacked in North Darfur on Monday, one in the centre of the region's main town of el-Fasher, which was also visited by Tutu and other elders including former President Jimmy Carter on Wednesday. The driver of one of the stolen aid vehicles was still missing, the U.N. said. Experts say 200,000 have died in more than four years of fighting in Darfur and 2.5 million have been driven from their homes -- figures that Khartoum disputes.
