New York: The UN Secretary-General has strongly condemned a deadly attack on peacekeepers serving with the UN peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic, or CAR, which claimed the life of a Zambian peacekeeper and left another wounded. The ambush took place on Friday along the Birao-Am Dafock axis in the volatile Vakaga Prefecture, in northeastern CAR, close to the border with conflict-hit Sudan.

According to United Nations, the stabilization mission, MINUSCA, reported that the patrol was targeted by unidentified armed elements in the locality of Am-Sissia. The attack could potentially be classified as a war crime. In recent months, peacekeepers have faced increasing threats; in March, a Kenyan peacekeeper was killed in the Haut-Mbomou prefecture, and a month earlier, a Tunisian blue helmet lost his life in the north. Earlier this week, two Nepalese peacekeepers were injured during an assault in the southwest.

Valentine Rugwabiza, head of the UN mission, expressed concern over the increasing number of attacks against peacekeepers and called for justice, urging the authorities to take decisive actions against those responsible. Since its deployment in 2014, MINUSCA has suffered significant losses, with around 150 peacekeepers losing their lives.

The 17,000-strong force was established to help stabilize CAR, a nation plagued by decades of political instability, armed conflict, and humanitarian crises. According to a February report by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), worsening insecurity across parts of the country has forced MINUSCA to increase patrols in several regions, especially near the border with Sudan, where violence and displacement have surged in recent months due to the brutal civil war between rival militaries there.

The Secretary-General reaffirmed the UN's solidarity with the people and Government of CAR, emphasizing the world body's continued commitment to peace and stability in the region.