UN Peacekeepers Killed In The Congo (from ATSNN), page 1

posted on Feb, 25 2005 @ 02:01 PM

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The UN reports that 9 of its Peacekeepers were killed in the DRC today They were Bangladeshis and were killed by militias. This is apparently the fourth most deadly attack on UN troops in Africa, and the biggest day of UN troop casualties in africa occured in the Congo.

story.news.yahoo.com
U.N. sources said blue-helmeted soldiers had recovered the bodies of their comrades after two U.N. patrols were fired upon from all sides in a well-organized ambush in the lawless Ituri district of the former Zaire.
The United Nations has a 4,800-strong force in Ituri made up of four contingents from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Morocco and Nepal. The total U.N. force in Congo numbers 16,000, making it the world body's biggest peacekeeping operation.
Ituri is one of Congo's worst trouble spots, where ethnic militias have killed 50,000 civilians since 1999 -- the year the current U.N. force in the country, known by its French acronym MONUC, was established.
[T]he patrols were attacked in Ndoki, 19 miles east of Ituri's main city of Bunia and an area controlled by a predominantly ethnic Lendu militia known as FNI.

Please visit the link provided for the complete story.

I have to wonder at the effect something like this has on Peackeeper moral. These men were Bangladeshi, and the people looking for them were Pakistani, two countries that are not exactly best friends. Having troop units from different nations has to have some effect on the espirit de corps of the groups as a whole. On the one hand it could lead to fragmentation, on the other it could result in national units being very tightly knitted together.

Most militaries have policies of not leaving men behind or standing shoulder to shoulder with their comrades. Can the Pakistanis be expected to immeadiately retalliat against the FNI rebels? Will the UN as a whole hunt them to the ends of the congo to punish them? I don't think that anyone thinks that they would. Any suggestions as to what effect that sort of thing has on multinational forces?

Related News Links:
www.un.int
www.un.org
story.news.yahoo.com[/ur l]
[url=http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/20041219-095248-1062r.htm]Washington Times Editorial on Rape case

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[edit on 25-2-2005 by Banshee]

sensfan

posted on Feb, 25 2005 @ 02:07 PM

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I think this is the same story as in an earlier submission...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Nygdan

posted on Feb, 25 2005 @ 02:10 PM

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Ooo, a competition. Looks like it could be intersting!

EnronOutrunHomerun

posted on Feb, 25 2005 @ 02:22 PM

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*Throws up his dukes*

Hehe....Which ever one makes it...I don't really care - they're both well written - If I may say so myself

But, I am surprised that one of them hasn't made it yet, or that comments have not been made on the very serious nature of what's occurring in the Congo - Especially with the conspiracy-related information I included in mine

[edit on 2/25/2005 by EnronOutrunHomerun]