UN Peacekeepers Accused of Raping 12 Year Olds

The first indications of sexual exploitation emerged within months of the U.N. force's arrival, and the Daily Telegraph has seen a draft of an internal report compiled by the U.N. children's agency UNICEF in July 2005 detailing the problem. But the United Nations has not publicly acknowledged the problem, and when contacted repeatedly by the Telegraph, U.N. headquarters refused to comment.

The allegations will be deeply embarrassing to the new U.N. chief, Secretary-General Ban, as the U.N. is pushing to be allowed to launch a new peacekeeping mission to help end the humanitarian crisis in Sudan's northwestern region, Darfur.