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Khartoum, 28 Dec - (ANA) - Sudan is reported to have ordered two senior UN officials to leave, amid tensions between Khartoum and the peacekeeping mission in the western Darfur region. A UN spokesperson, who spoke on condition of anoymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said Ali Zaatari and Yvonne Helle were ordered to leave on Thursday. Zaatari has been UN resident coordinator at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) while Helle worked as the UNDP's country director. The UNDP and Sudanese foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Stephane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, said the UN had protested against the expulsions. "The UN has filed a protest with the government of Sudan following their decision to request the departure of two senior UN officials from the country," he told the AFP news agency. Dujarric said Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, "condemns" the move and urged Sudan to "immediately" reverse the decision and cooperate with UN entities in the country. "The sanctioning of United Nations personnel sent to Sudan to carry out their duties in accordance with the United Nations Charter is unacceptable." The head of the UN peacekeeping forces said UNAMID was unlikely to bow to Sudan's request to leave when the situation there appears to be worsening, Reuters news agency reported. It was unclear clear why the UN officials were asked to leave, or when they would have to exit the country. The UN staffer declined to provide further details. Zaatari, a Jordanian national, had been in Sudan for nearly two years, and Helle, who is from the Netherlands, had spent about a year heading the UNDP's office in the country.