UN: 15 Tigrayan origin UN peacekeepers seek asylum in SSudan
by Edith M. Lederer, The Associated Press
Posted Feb 22, 2021 4:35 pm EDT
Last Updated Feb 22, 2021 at 4:44 pm EDT
CAMEROON, Cameroon About 15 Ethiopian peacekeepers of Tigrayan origin who were due to return home on Monday asked to remain in South Sudan, U.N. officials said, a strong indication they feared going back to Ethiopia where government and allied forces have been fighting forces loyal to Tigray’s fugitive leaders.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said they were among 169 personnel from the Ethiopian contingent in the U.N. peacekeeping mission scheduled to rotate out of South Sudan’s capital, Juba. Some 2,100 of the mission’s 17,200 troops, police and civilians are from Ethiopia.