United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned the killing of a Kenyan peacekeeper serving in the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA). The peacekeeper was killed on Friday by unknown assailants while his unit was on a long-range patrol near the village of Tabane in the Haut-Mbomou prefecture in southeastern CAR.
In a statement issued by the UN Spokesperson’s Office, Guterres expressed his deepest condolences to the family of the fallen peacekeeper, as well as to the Government and the people of Kenya. The Secretary-General emphasized that attacks on UN peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law and called on the Central African authorities to ensure that those responsible are swiftly brought to justice.
The Central African Republic has been plagued by internal conflict since 2012, with sectarian violence between predominantly Muslim militia groups and mostly Christian anti-Balaka fighters resulting in thousands of deaths. The crisis escalated in 2013 when armed groups seized the capital, forcing then-President François Bozizé to flee. While elections were held in 2016, and a peace agreement was signed in 2019 with UN and African Union mediation, violence has continued in many parts of the country.
MINUSCA was deployed in 2014 to stabilize the nation and protect civilians. However, UN peacekeepers have repeatedly been targeted by armed groups in the volatile region, making their mission increasingly dangerous.
MINUSCA chief Valentine Rubwabiza, who also serves as the UN Special Representative in CAR, expressed her shock at what she described as a “heinous attack” on peacekeepers dedicated to protecting civilians. She assured that a rapid intervention team had been dispatched to the site to secure the area.
Rubwabiza called on CAR authorities to make every effort to identify and prosecute the perpetrators, reaffirming that such cowardly attacks would not deter peacekeepers from fulfilling their mandate to ensure peace and stability in the region. The UN remains committed to supporting CAR’s path toward lasting peace.
