Renson Mwakandana
Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, the African Union’s Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security, paid tribute to Burundian troops who died while serving in Somalia during a visit to the Great Lakes area.
He lay a wreath of flowers on one of the graves of the AU peace battalion, in the company of former Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye, who is now a member of the AU advisory panel, in acknowledgment of Burundi’s commitment to this mission.
“We seize this opportunity once again to pay tribute to all the men who have fallen on the battlefield in the search for peace on the continent. At the same time, we take this opportunity to pay tribute to those Burundians who have recently lost in Somalia in the search for peace,” said Ambassador Bankole.
This remembrance comes just a few weeks after six Burundian soldiers were killed in a terrorist attack on the AU Transitional Mission in Somalia’s El Baraaf facility (ATMIS). According to official accounts, ten soldiers were killed, 25 were injured, and 50 terrorists were slain in the attack.
Families of the victims are now expressing their dissatisfaction with the compensation process, which they allege has been delayed. Alain-Tribert Mutabazi, the Burundian Minister of National Defense, has guaranteed them prompt payment.
The Minister stated that they hope and expect that this compensation or indemnity does not take long to arrive or be paid on the accounts of the entitled citizens.
Burundi is the second-largest troop contributor to ATMIS, which includes roughly 20,000 military, police, and civilian people from five African countries.
ATMIS formally succeeded the African peacekeeping force in Somalia (Amisom) with a mandate to stabilize the country in the face of the terrorist group al-Shabab, which was extended by the United Nations Security Council until the end of 2024 in late March.
