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Rabat – Two Moroccan soldiers have been killed in Bangassou, Central Africa, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINSUCA) announced on Tuesday.
In a statement published on its website, MINUSCA revealed that the two soldiers had been killed in an ambush by the mainly-Christian militia anti-Balaka in Bangassou, 700 km east of the capital Bangui.
The death of the two soldiers came after another Moroccan soldier was killed on Sunday. The three were among the contingent of Moroccan soldiers ambushed by anti-Balaka.
“I am shocked at the news of losing two more lives, and I strongly condemn this flagrant violation of the right to life and international law,” said Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General and Head of MINUSCA.
The UN Representative offered his condolences to Morocco and the families of the victims.
“MINUSCA expresses its full solidarity and support for the Moroccan contingent deployed in Bangassou and praises these soldiers of peace for their courage and the enormous sacrifices they continue to make in the face of adversity to protect all the civilian population in Bangassou and other parts of the country, regardless of their identity,” said the release.
La #Minusca regrette la mort de 2 nouveaux casques bleus #Maroc dans une embuscade, cet après-midi à #Bangassou #CARcrisis
— MINUSCA (@UN_CAR) July 25, 2017
On Sunday, the contingent of Moroccan soldiers was ambushed while returning from a humanitarian mission escorting trucks filled with water to increase levels of the nearby Mbomou river.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirmed their support for Morocco in a speech read by spokeswoman Agnès Romatet-Espagne on Monday, expressing both sympathy and support to the kingdom’s ongoing peacekeeping operations.
“We present our condolences to the family of the victim and the Moroccan authorities,” said Romatet-Espagne.
Since it was established in 2014, MINUSCA has deployed over 12,000 troops to the country to protect civilians, following concerns of the CAR’s “security, humanitarian, human rights, and political crisis.”
To date, eight Moroccan peacekeepers have died in the Central African Republic since 2015.
