Exclusive - Russia air firms' staff guilty of sex abuse

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. peacekeeping department said it temporarily suspended the contracts of two Russian air transportation firms active in Sudan and Democratic Republic of the Congo after several staff were charged with sexual abuse of local residents.

The sexual abuse was "extremely serious, very, very bad stuff," a source familiar with the decision of the U.N. Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) told Reuters on condition of anonymity. He did not offer any specific details.