At least two people were killed Sunday, July 31, in fire by peacekeepers at a border post with Uganda, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), said the UN mission in DRC (Monusco) and a local official. Monusco, the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DRC, currently has more than 14,000 peacekeepers, with an annual budget of one billion dollars.
“Soldiers of the Intervention Brigade of the Monusco force returning from leave opened fire at the border post for unexplained reasons and forced the passage. This serious incident caused loss of life and serious injuries”deplores the UN mission in a press release, without providing a precise assessment. “The balance sheet is two dead”told AFP Joël Kitausa, a civil society leader in Kasindi, who reported 14 injuries.
“Unspeakable and irresponsible behavior”
The head of Monusco, Bintou Keita, said to herself “deeply shocked and dismayed by this serious incident”according to the mission statement. “Faced with this unspeakable and irresponsible behavior, the perpetrators of the shooting have been identified and arrested pending the conclusions of the investigation which has already begun in collaboration with the Congolese authorities”specifies MONUSCO.
The head of the #MONUSCOBitou Keita, said she was deeply shocked and dismayed by the serious incident that occurred this morning in Kasindi.
The perpetrators of the shooting have been identified and arrested pending the findings of the investigation.
—MONUSCO (@MONUSCO) July 31, 2022
“Contacts have also been established with the country of origin of these soldiers so that legal proceedings can be initiated urgently with the participation of victims and witnesses, so that exemplary sanctions can be taken as soon as possible”adds the UN mission.
For his part, the UN Secretary General said “besides”. Antonio Guterres “stresses in the strongest terms the need to establish responsibility for these events” and approve “the detention of the military personnel implicated in this incident and the immediate opening of an investigation”a deputy spokesman for the secretary general said in a statement.