By Mark Ogagan
The remains of the 14 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers who were killed in fighting in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) late last month finally returned home on Thursday and were handed over to their families.
The SANDF rescheduled the handing-over ceremony and memorial service from Thursday morning to the evening due to “unavoidable parliamentary commitments” related to the State of the Nation Address (SONA) debate in Cape Town.
The troops lost their lives at the hands of the M23 as fighting in the Goma region of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC’s) North Kivu province escalated, leading to the capture of Sake and Goma.
The rebel group fought intensely against the Congolese armed forces, resulting in the deaths of soldiers from 23 to 27 January during the M23’s advance.
The soldiers were part of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC), which aims to help restore peace, security, and stability in Africa’s second-largest country, and the United Nations mission (Monusco), which has a peace enforcement mandate in the DRC.
Families have been eagerly awaiting their loved ones after multiple delays, including medical processing in Uganda. It was originally reported by the SANDF that the remains would be handed over on 5 February.
The UN handled the repatriation, with the bodies sent by road to Entebbe, Uganda, with delays in the movement of the deceased out of the DRC. Following autopsies and other procedures, the remains were flown to South Africa on Wednesday evening aboard a Tanzanian Air Force Y-8 transport aircraft.
The remains of four Malawian and Tanzanian soldiers also killed during the advance on Goma were repatriated as well.
A handing over ceremony of the remains of the 14 was held at Air Force Mobile Deployment Wing (formerly Air Force Base Swartkop) in Centurion at 18:00, followed by a memorial service at 19:00.
Discussion about this post