Four UN helicopters were shot at, probably by militias allied to northern Sudan forces, during a visit to the disputed Sudanese region of Abyei late on Tuesday, according to a UN spokeswoman.
A total of 14 rounds were fired when the helicopters took off, but the crews landed safely, Hua Jiang , a UN spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
Jiang said militias of the Arab Misseriya tribe supported by Khartoum were probably responsible for the attack, adding that they were now moving southwards after civilians had left the main settlement of Abyei.
"There are reports that they are moving south," she said.
Jiang said fighting and looting in Abyei had stopped after inhabitants left, adding that some stockpiles of UN agencies had been looted.
Sudan's northern army moved tanks into Abyei town, the border area's main settlement, on Saturday, sparking an international outcry and forcing thousands to flee.
On Tuesday, Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Sudan's president, refused to withdraw troops from Abyei, defying international calls for a withdrawal, and raising the stakes in a standoff with the south.
"Abyei is northern Sudanese land," Bashir said, adding he had given the green light to the northern army to respond to any "provocation" by the south, which also claims Abyei and plans to secede in July.
Analysts are watching how the south will react, fearing further north-south fighting could reignite a full-blown conflict that would disrupt the already fragile region.
Sudanese forces and and South Sudan separatist fighters fought for decades before a 2005 peace deal that also allowed southerners to vote overwhelmingly for independence in a referendum in January
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