Pakistani peacekeeper posthumously awarded UN medal

Pakistani peacekeeper, Sepoy Amir Aslam who served the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, posthumously awarded the Dag Hammarskjold medal by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in a virtual ceremony held on Friday at UN headquarters in New York.

“As @UN commemorates  #PKDay, services of Sepoy Amir Aslam from Kotli, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, Pakistan acknowledged with posthumous award of Dag Hammarskjold medal by @antonioguterres in virtual ceremony being held @UNHQ today. Soldier was serving in #MONUSCO,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a tweet on Friday.

May 29 marks the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. Over the years, Pakistan has contributed to the UN’s peacekeeping operations with over 200,000 troops in 46 missions across 28 countries.

At least 157 Pakistani service members have lost their lives during these operations but Islamabad remains committed to helping the UN in building peace and restoring stability in turbulent regions.

Globally, at least 3,900 peacekeepers from different UN member nations have been killed while serving in different conflict zones across the world since 1948.

The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is commemorated to pay tribute to the peacekeepers who include both uniformed and civilian personnel.

This year, the UN has chosen to highlight its female peacekeepers with the theme, ‘Women in peacekeeping: a key to peace’. The theme has been chosen in light of the 20th anniversary of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.