Peacekeeping force guards supply convoy of soldiers from the joint African Union United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID).
THE African Union cum United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNMID) which includes over 870 Tanzanian troops has mandate to use force to protect civilians or return fire if attacked.
The UNMID spokesman, Chris Cycmanik said over the phone from Darfur in Sudan yesterday that the hybrid peace keeping force operates under Chapter Seven of the UN Charter.
"The UN forces in Darfur operate under Chapter Seven which allows the use of force and in fact in this incident they did return fire," said Mr Cycmanik. He noted that reports that the TPDF soldiers who died in a rebel attack in the troubled Sudanese region were unable to protect themselves are not true.
Cycmanik was clarifying a statement made by the Tanzania People's defence Forces (TPDF) spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Kapambala Mgawe last Monday, in which he said the country is seeking a review of UN mandate in Darfur to enable peace keeping soldiers retaliate with fire power if attacked.
"We are allowed to use any weapon including semi- automatic rifles, machine guns and tanks in combat," Cycmanik noted. Bodies of the seven slain TPDF soldiers are expected to return home next Friday or Saturday, but Cycmanik refused to identify them saying their names would better be released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation or TPDF.
He said so far all bodies have undergone a postmortem and were yesterday paraded for final respects by their peers before a journey back home began. Under Chapter Seven of the UN Mandate, soldiers in volatile regions including Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali and Somalia are allowed to return fire if attacked while Chapter 6 Mandate does not allow the return of fire and is applicable in relatively peaceful areas.
UNMID hybrid forces in Darfur are under Tanzanian Lieutenant General Paul Mella and his deputy Major General Wynjones Kasamba also of TPDF. The Tanzanian soldiers were deployed to Darfur in February, last year and the seven deaths are the first largest casualty for the hybrid force since the mission started.
Meanwhile, one of the Tanzanian soldiers injured during the ambush in Sudan on Saturday has been referred to another hospital in Khartoum from Nyala in Darfur where he was admitted for three days.
The soldier (name withheld) is among four who were said to be on critical condition on Monday by the Tanzania People's Defence Forces (TPDF) spokesman, Lt Col Kapambala Mgawe. Lt Col Mgawe said yesterday that the soldier was transferred alongside the bodies of seven soldiers who were killed on the same ambush.
The bodies are undergoing final postmortem in Khartoum. "We expect the bodies to arrive in the country perhaps over the weekend. They will be preserved in Lugalo Hospital awaiting last respects due to be held at the Diamond Jubilee grounds near TPDF headquarters," he said.
He added that United Nations has assured the safety of Tanzanian soldiers on the peacekeeping mission following talks between TPDF and UN in the wake of Saturday's incident. On Monday, Lt Col Mgawe said 10 soldiers out of 14 injured were doing well in Nyala Hospital in Darfur. He added that only four of the soldiers were under intensive care.
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