The Burundi National Defence Forces (BNDF) troops serving with the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) have been honoured for their contributions to peace and security in Somalia at a colourful ceremony on Saturday at the Jowhar Airfield Base in Hirshabelle State.

ATMIS Sector Five Commander, Col. Oscar Hatungimana, presided over the event, which was attended by United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) Regional Administrative Officer, Gagan Banjara, and other senior ATMIS and UN officials.

The outgoing Burundi contingent troops, who have completed their one-year tour of duty, were recognized for their dedication and contributions to ATMIS mandate, which includes joint operations with Somali security forces to defeat Al-Shabaab, securing population centres and Main Supply Routes (MSRs) in the Middle Shabelle region. 

Col. Hatungimana praised the troops for their dedication and commitment to peace and stability in Somalia. 

“These officers have served with courage and discharged their duties diligently. I commend them for their bravery, discipline, and exemplary service to ATMIS and the people of Somalia,” said Col. Hatungimana. 

He welcomed the newly rotated troops and urged them to carry on the legacy of the previous contingent. 

“We welcome those taking over and urge them to be diligent. You have the responsibility of supporting Somali security forces to effectively take over full security responsibility for their country,” said Col. Hatungimana. 

UNSOS Regional Administrative Officer, Gagan Banjara, representing the UN, commended the outgoing Burundi troops for their distinguished service to the peace support operations and for providing security to humanitarian actors. 

“ATMIS Burundi troops have done a commendable job in their Area of Responsibility (AoR). We applaud them for their courage, dedication, and professionalism exhibited in discharging their duties in this region. The UN country team is grateful to them and their leadership for the good work done in supporting UN agencies and other humanitarian organisations,” said Mr. Banjara. 

The outgoing BNDF troops deployed to Somalia in May 2023. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS).

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said:

“The violence in and around El Fasher in Sudan is appalling.”

“Villages around El Fasher have been burnt down. Hospitals have been destroyed. Hundreds are dead and injured from the fighting in recent days, and over 800,000 civilians have no means of escape.”

“I am deeply concerned by highly credible reports that some of the violence in Darfur is ethnically motivated. Attacks against Masalit, Fur, Zaghawa, and other non-Arab communities by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias are already taking place around El Fasher. The ongoing pattern of violence in Darfur, including apparent systematic attacks against civilians, may amount to crimes against humanity.”

“I also condemn the indiscriminate shelling and aerial bombing in densely populated areas by the Sudanese Armed Forces, which has led to catastrophic losses of civilian life.”

“It is within the power of the warring parties to stop this. The RSF must halt its siege of El Fasher and both sides must de-escalate immediately.  Both sides must fully honour the commitments made in the Jeddah Declaration, including allowing unhindered and safe humanitarian access and complying with their obligations under international law.”

“We must hold accountable those responsible for violence against civilians. Thanks to open-source reporting, including that funded by the UK, we have detail about who on the ground is responsible. And we will continue to explore all levers to disrupt the funding of those perpetrating the violence.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Today, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi spoke by phone with the President of Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby.

President El-Sisi congratulated the President of Chad on winning the presidential elections. For his part, President Déby expressed his appreciation for the President’s kind gesture and stressed his country’s keenness to enhance the distinguished historical relations between the two countries and peoples.

The two presidents stressed their interest to further strengthen and diversify cooperation frameworks at various levels, in addition to continuing consultations with regard to addressing various regional and continental challenges, in light of the successive developments that call for solidarity and coordination between African brothers.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Presidency of the Arab Republic of Egypt.

The ECOWAS Commission and the Arab Republic of Egypt are exploring the possibility for greater cooperation in peace and security, towards making West Africa a safer and more stable region on the continent.

This came to the fore when the Egyptian Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS H.E. Mohamed Fouad paid a courtesy call on the ECOWAS Commission’s Commissioner of Political Affairs, Peace and Security Dr. Abdel-Fatau Musa on the 16th May 2024 in Abuja, Nigeria.

Commissioner Musa stated that the operationalization of the ECOWAS counter terrorism Force is one such area where cooperation is needed. He hinted that plans are afoot to convene a special summit on the future of regional integration, even as the regional organisation is working very hard to ensure that the heightened geo-political interests in the region do not lead to proxy wars.

Stating that ECOWAS has a lot to learn from Egypt on regional peace consolidation, the Commissioner disclosed that ECOWAS was opposed to the idea of withdrawal of Member States from the Community because such actions were against the principle of integration and pan Africanism.

Particularly, the Commissioner noted that the ECOWAS Commission was looking forward to seeing how Egypt can “support the impact of the dynamics of the current happenings in Libya in such a way as can guarantee the safety of the Sahel, having now been established that the Sahel is defining our peace and security environment today”  

Responding, Ambassador Fouad acknowledged ECOWAS as the most successful regional economic community on the continent and noted that even though Egypt is not in West Africa, it is mindful of the proximity of the border areas of the region and the Maghreb.

Egypt, he stressed is very much disposed to having a holistic approach to tackling issues of terrorism, cross border crimes, insecurity and insurgencies.

He said Egypt’s cooperation with ECOWAS stems from mutual understanding and shared needs for capacity building and information exchange while both sides expressed optimism that the experiences of Egypt would be very valuable to the regional peacekeeping, mediation and integration efforts of ECOWAS.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).