Foreign Desk | February 13, 1998, Friday
Influential Sudan Official Is Killed in Plane Crash

By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr. (NYT) 684 words
Late Edition - Final , Section A , Page 10 , Column 1
ABSTRACT - Lieut Gen al-Zubeir Mohammed Saley, Sudan's influential and populist Vice President, is killed when plane carrying several military officers and politicians crashes as it tries to land in southern town of Nasir; it is major blow to Islamic party that controls country; at least seven other people, including provincial governor and former rebel leader who had switched sides, are killed when plane crashes in bad weather; map (M) In a major blow to the Islamic party that controls this vast country, the Sudan's influential and populist Vice President was killed today when a plane carrying several military officers and politicians crashed as it tried to land in a southern town, the Government said.
At least seven other people, including a provincial governor and a former rebel leader who had switched sides, were killed when the plane crashed in bad weather as it descended into Nasir, a town 435 miles south of Khartoum near the Ethiopian border