Unidentified Armed Men Attacked UN Mission In Central African Republic On Tues - Spokesman

Unidentified armed men opened fire against peacekeepers of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), earlier this week, the mission's spokesman, Vladimir Monteiro, told Sputnik on Friday, adding that the "blue helmets", the name given to these peacekeepers, had repelled the attack

PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd February, 2019) Unidentified armed men opened fire against peacekeepers of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), earlier this week, the mission's spokesman, Vladimir Monteiro, told Sputnik on Friday, adding that the "blue helmets", the name given to these peacekeepers, had repelled the attack.

"On February 19, armed individuals on motorcycles opened fire at the "blue helmets" of MINUSCA on the Bambari-Alindao motorway.

They [the peacekeepers] returned fire, which resulted in the attackers' death," Monteiro said.

MINUSCA was established by the UN Security Council on April 10, 2014, to address the existing security challenges in the African nation, which has been plagued by decades of instability and fighting.

The mission currently comprises 13,595 uniformed personnel, including 10,768 troops, 153 military observers, 292 staff officers and 2,050 police officers, according to its official website.