South African soldier shot dead in Burundi
A South African soldier taking part in a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Burundi has been shot dead, apparently by a colleague, the South Africa National Defense Force (SANDF) said on Thursday.
The SANDF said in a statement issued in Pretoria that Gunner Elvin Mopani Hendricks, 24, died in a shooting incident on Wednesday night in a military camp in Bujumbura.
"A second member of the SANDF contingent serving with the mission in Burundi has been arrested by members of the South African Military Police Agency in connection with the incident.
"The circumstances surrounding the shooting incident will be thoroughly investigated."
The defense force did not reveal further details of what happened.
Hendricks, a member of 10 Anti-Aircraft Regiment, is survived by his mother, who lives in Kimberley in the Northern Cape.
His body would be returned to South Africa later this week, the statement said.
Hendricks is the 13th South African member of the peacekeeping mission killed in Burundi, none of them in combat.
Some 700 South African troops have been in Bujumbura since October 2002 to provide protection to the politicians returning from exile to join transitional institutions set up in November.
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18 Novembre 2004 à 18:22 dans
- zsandf (anglais)
