UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations honoured 57 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers from 32 countries, including two from Pakistan.
These peacekeepers paid the ultimate price for the cause of peace last year serving the missions around the world, at an impressive ceremony that marked the annual International Day of UN Peacekeepers.
Among the posthumous awardees of Dag Hammarskjold medals are: Sepoy Muhammad Tarique and Havildar Ahsan Ullah Khan who both served with UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).
UN Secretary-General Antonio, who presided over the ceremony in the Trusteeship Council Chamber at UN Headquarters in New York, gave away the awards for the fallen peacekeeper which were received by ambassadors of the countries they hailed from.
The awards for the civilians, who lost their lives in line of their duty, were received on behalf of their families by the UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support, Atul Khare.
Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, accompanied by the Mission’s Military Adviser Col. Umar Shafique, attended the ceremony and accepted the awards, along with other heads of missions and their military attaches.
The UN chief also presented awards to the 2024 Military Gender Advocate of the Year, Squadron Leader Sharon Mwinsote Syme from Ghana and the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year award to Superintendent Zainab Gbla of Sierra Leone. Both of them also serve with the United Nations Interim Security Force in Abyei (UNISFA).
The first UN peacekeeping operation was established in 1948 and today more than 68,000 civilian, military, and police personnel are posted at 11 missions in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Pakistan is the 5th largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN Peacekeeping, the UN’s flagship activity. It currently deploys more than 2,800 military and police personnel to the UN peace operations in Abyei, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cyprus, Somalia, South Sudan and Western Sahara.
The Day pays tribute to their unwavering service and sacrifice while honouring the more than 4,400 blue helmets who have died in the line of duty over the past 77 years – 57 in 2024 alone.
This year’s theme focuses on the future of peacekeeping and Secretary-General Guterres noted that “peacekeepers face increasingly complex situations in an increasingly complex world.”
He highlighted growing polarization and division across the globe, threats such as terrorism and deadly misinformation targeting peacekeepers, as well as challenges that transcend borders ranging from climate change to transnational crime.
