Arrest of one of the presumed murderers of two MONUC military observers

On 10th May 2006, following allegations of the presence of armed groups leaders, MONUC Moroccan battalion led cordon-and-search operations in the Nyakasanza area of the town of Bunia, the administrative center for the Ituri district.

Jointly coordinated with the Congolese judicial authorities and national police, the operation resulted in the arrest of Mr. Ubemu Uzele, which took place without incident.

MONUC applauds the arrest of Mr. Ubemu Uzele, the presumed murderer of its two peacekeepers on 12 May 2003 in Mongbwalu, 49 km north-west of Bunia.

Jordanian Major Safwat Oran and Malawi Captain Siddon Davis Banda, aged 37 and 35 respectively, both unarmed UN military observers, who were reported missing a few days before, were brutally murdered and buried by their abductors and their bodies found on 18 May 2003, during searches conducted by MONUC teams. The murder of United Nations peacekeeping staff constitutes a war crime, under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Mr. Ubemo Uzele, who was handed over to DRC authorities, is the fourth person suspected of involvement in the murder of UN peacekeepers to be arrested. For MONUC, this arrest marks a breakthrough in the fight against impunity and sends a strong signal to the perpetrators of criminal acts.