Ban appoints Cameroonian general to lead peacekeeping force

Central African Republic: Ban appoints Cameroonian general to lead UN peacekeeping force

30 July 2014

As the United Nations “re-hats” some of the African troops currently serving in the Central African Republic to a peacekeeping mission that will take over in mid-September, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced that the current African force commander will remain in charge under the UN flag.

Major General Martin Chomu Tumenta has been appointed to head the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), according to a statement from a UN spokesperson.

The Major General will take up his appointment when MINUSCA officially takes authority from the African-led International Support Mission in the country (MISCA), which he now leads.

A Cameroon national, the Major General has a distinguished career in the Armed Forces Airborne Infantry in that country, and also held the appointment of Human Resources Director at the Department of Defence.
He will head a new Mission that will initially comprise up to 10,000 military personnel, including 240 military observers and 200 staff officers, as well as 1,800 police personnel.

The CAR has been embroiled in fighting currently fuelled by inter-communal retaliatory attacks between anti-balaka and Séléka rebels, after the latter were ousted from power in January 2014. An estimated 2.2 million people are in need of humanitarian aid as a result.

ENDS

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