Sepoy Amir Aslam has been posthumously awarded Dag Hammarskjold medal by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres for his services to UN peacekeeping. The medal was awarded by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at a ceremony held at the UN headquarters on Friday.
Pakistan commemorates ‘Spirit of Sacrifice’ of our valiant Peacekeepers, who continue to serve humanity in challenging & restive regions of the World. “Sense of Purpose and Commitment of Pakistan towards global peace under UN Charter remains unflinching” COAS.#UNPeacekeepersDay pic.twitter.com/qz1LiDXVUo
— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) May 28, 2020
The ceremony honoured a total of 83 military, police, and civilian personnel from 39 countries who lost their lives while serving in peacekeeping operations last year. Every year 29th May is marked as International Peacekeeping Day.
Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa said that Pakistan’s commitment to global peace under the United Nations Charter remained unwavering.
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“Pakistan commemorates spirit of sacrifice of our valiant peacekeepers, who continue to serve humanity in challenging and restive regions of the world,” he said.
Director General of ISPR Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar tweeted: “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 Dag Hammarskjöld Medal is a posthumous award given by the United Nations to military personnel, police, or civilians who lose their lives while serving in a United Nations peacekeeping operation
During a visit to Pakistan earlier in the year, the UN chief also met and thanked Pakistani peacekeepers for their service and sacrifice, adding that Pakistan has always been a consistent and reliable contributors to global peacekeeping efforts.
As @UN commemorates Peacekeepers Day, 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 at UNHQ today. Soldier was serving in MONUSCO.#PKDay pic.twitter.com/8y3VI1xVvD
— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) May 29, 2020
Pakistan is the fifth largest contributor of uniformed personnel to United Nations peacekeeping, with more than 6,000 men and women serving under the UN flag.
Pakistan has a long history with UN peacekeeping, having been one of the largest contributors of troops and police for decades.
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Pakistani women and men currently serve in seven UN operations, with the vast majority of them deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Darfur region of Sudan and the Central African Republic (CAR).