The Kenyan, a Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) officer, was killed on Friday, March 28, in Haut-Mbomou following an ambush by an armed group. The officer, who was from the Kenyan army, was the only fatality from the ambush.
The attack is second of the kind, and has never happened in the recent years, except in the 2022 when an ambush was laid on our defence.
According to reports, the officer had barely lasted two months in the war-ridden country, as he was deployed there as a military observer.
In their statement, the council warned that attacks against peacekeepers may constitute war crimes as it emphasized all parties in CAR of their obligations under international humanitarian law.
Further, ambassadors also weighed in on the Kenyan’s death, calling on the CAR government to swiftly investigate the attack with the help of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).
Confirming the incident, Valentine Rugwabiza, the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for the Central African Republic and Head of MINUSCA, said she was “extremely shocked” since peacekeepers’ main task is to protect civilians in the CAR.
She also revealed that a rapid intervention team had been deployed to the site of the incident to secure the area.
“She extends her deepest condolences to the Government and people of Kenya and expresses her full sympathy to the victim’s family. A rapid intervention team has been deployed to the site of the incident to secure the area,” a statement from Rugwabiza’s team read.
Central African Republic, or CAR, has been embroiled in internal conflict for more than a decade, with militia from different religious factions engaging in devastating war, resulting in deaths of thousands over the years.
The conflict took a sensational turn in 2013 when armed groups seized the capital, forcing President François Bozizé to flee for his life. Fighting intensified in 2016 following elections after tensions initially reduced in 2015.
In a bid to diffuse tensions and unite the country, peace talks kicked off in 2019. with the African Union (AU) leading talks with the help of the UN.
Notably, this is the second case of a Kenyan security officer reportedly losing his life, and it comes just days after the country was plunged into uncertainty after news of a missing Kenyan police officer in Haiti.
The officer, identified as Benedict Kabiru, was reported missing after an ambush, with reports suggesting the gangs in the Caribbean nation killed the officer.