Ten years after its establishment, the mandate of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) has expired, with the world body’s Security Council (SC) terminating its peacekeeping mission.
The decision was strengthened after a letter from Mali’s transitional government requesting immediate withdrawal of the multi-national seventeen thousand plus peacekeeping force from the landlocked West African country.
The termination resolution was adopted on 30 June and followed by another “requesting” MINUSMA immediately start cessation of operations, transfer of tasks and reduction and withdrawal of personnel “with the aim of completing this process by 31 December this year,” according to a statement.
MINUSMA will work resolutely toward orderly and secure withdrawal of personnel in consultation with Malian authorities and in the framework of the agreement between the UN and Mali government on the status of the operation.
Special Representative of UN Secretary-General and MINUSMA Head, El Ghassim Wane, looked back proudly on the commitment with which MINUSMA accompanied the Malian people in their aspiration for peace, security and reconciliation throughout its ten-year presence in Mali.
He expressed his gratitude to uniformed and civilian personnel, both national and international, for work, dedication and sacrifices as well as paying tribute to troop and police contributing countries for contributions to peace efforts in Mali.
As of February this year, the MINUSMA human resource component numbered 17,430 in total with 15,209 uniformed personnel comprising by far the bulk. In turn, 13,209 military personnel are way ahead of the 1,920 police in the uniform personnel number count.
The top 10 troop and equipment contributing countries, again as of February, were Chad (1 427), Bangladesh (1 396), Egypt (1 081), Senegal (970), Niger (874), Côte d’Ivoire (859), Togo (736), Guinea (668), Burkina Faso (661) and Germany (617).
UN Peacekeeping reports 303 fatalities in MINUSMA ranks in its 10 year existence.
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