Ramaphosa orders flags to be flown at half-mast to honour SA soldiers who died in DRC

JOHANENSBURG - National flags will be flown at half-mast across the country for seven days, beginning from Thursday, in honour of South African soldiers who died in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

President Cyril Ramaphosa issued this directive as the country mourns the death of the 14 soldiers in January.

The men were part of a mission to bring peace to the eastern DRC.

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Their bodies were supposed to be repatriated this week, but the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) said there have been delays due to technicalities.

Some families of the soldiers who died in the DRC said they have not heard a word from government on the repatriation process.

"We haven’t heard anything yet. We just heard the rumour from the news, but we, as a family, haven’t received anything from the SANDF."