The United Nations Mission in South Sudan or UNMISS is on Friday joining the world in commemorating International Peacekeepers’ Day.
In an invitation letter to CRN it says 3,358 military, police and civilian personnel lost their lives in the service of peace due to acts of violence, accidents and disease since the first UN peacekeeping mission was established in 1948 until April 2015.
It reports that during the last 18 months, 166 peacekeepers worldwide died, including 15 UNMISS staff members and three Russian airmen contract with the Mission who died last August when their helicopter was gunned down near Bentiu, Unity State.
These provide a sobering reminder of the danger and many risks that UN peacekeepers face as they perform their duties in areas affected by war, violence and insecurity.