The rotation exercise of RDF peacekeepers ended yesterday with 85 troops that were stationed in Sudan, Khartoum, under the United Nations Mission to Sudan (UNAMIS) peacekeeping mission, returning home.

Earlier in the day, a similar number had left Kigali to replace them in their Khartoum station. The peacekeepers were received by, among others, the Army Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Caesar Kayizari.

Army and Defence Spokesperson, Lt. Col. Jill Rutaremara told reporters that the group would soon join their colleagues who left Sudan in the past few days, for a general de-briefing before taking a 14-days leave of duty.

Rwanda has 254 troops deployed in Sudan’s capital where they protect VIPs and key UNAMID installations. It also has four battalions deployed in Darfur. The Darfur rotation ended earlier on September 28.

Rwandan troops serving both in the AU-UN hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) as well as in UNAMIS, in Khartoum, will again be swapped in the routine annual rotation exercise towards the end of next year.

Rwanda is the second largest troop contributor to UNAMID after Nigeria. The UNAMID force commander is Lieutenant General Patrick Nyamvumba.

Ends