UN Peacekeeping Day: SANDF honours fallen soldiers killed in DRC
The annual event seeks to honour military, police and civilian peacekeepers who have contributed to creating a more equal and just world.
SANDF troops rehearse on 28 May 2025 in preparation for UN International Peacekeepers Day on 29 May 2025. Picture: Simphiwe Nkosi/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - The South African Defence Force (SANDF) will honuor 14 soldiers who died on assignment in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during a wreath-laying ceremony in Bloemfontein on Thursday.
This in line with the global commemoration of United Nations Peacekeeping Day.
The annual event seeks to honour military, police and civilian peacekeepers who have contributed to creating a more equal and just world.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will also be laying a wreath at the peacekeepers memorial in New York, in the United States to honor troops globally.
More than 4000 fallen heroes and heroines have died since the first peacekeeping mission was established in 1948.
READ: SANDF to honour 14 soldiers who died in DRC on UN Peacekeeping Day
Their sacrifices will be honoured and celebrated globally for their pursuit of fostering peace in war-ridden countries.
South Africa will remember 14 fallen soldiers during the conflict between the eastern DRC government and rebel group M23.
"The South African National Defence Force takes a moment to reflect and honour its heroes and heroines. We do this annually in partnership with the United Nations to commemorate and they come here with their special representative here in South Africa and to ensure that we are still revived in terms of the message of ensuring that there is regional peace and stability in the continent," said SANDF spokesperson, Prince Tshabalala.
Tshabalala has added that the day offers a chance for reflection on all the sacrifices made to silence guns on the continent.