The UN force due to take over peacekeeping duties in the Democratic Republic of Congo's troubled northeast on September 1 will be made up of 4,700 troops, one of the new force's commanders said Sunday.
The current French-led EU force stationed in the regional capital of Bunia was deployed in June as an interim measure while the UN force prepared itself.
"There will be 4,700 men, first of all the Uruguayan battalion, the Bangladeshi contingent with their air components, the Pakistani contingent and a Nepalese contingent," said General Jan Isberg, the force's second in command.
The four battalions will have a broader mandate authorizing them to open fire to complete their mission, compared to the previous force's authorization only to fire in self defense.
Ethnic violence between the majority Lendus and the minority Hemas tribe in the region has claimed the lives of 50,000 people since 1999 and displaced half a million others.
The first Pakistani troops will arrive on Saturday, while no date has yet been fixed for the arrival of the Nepalese.
"There is a political process going on between Nepal and the UN in New York. They will arrive after the Pakistanis," said Isberg, adding that the Nepalese would be operative sometime in September.
Bangladeshi and Uruguayan battalions totalling some 2,000 troops are already in Bunia.
The new force, known as MONUC 2, will have more firepower, including Indian attack helicopters. In contrast to the previous French-led force which brought a relative calm to the streets of Bunia, the UN force is authorised and expected to pacify the entire region.
"Operations outside Bunia ... are very much depending on what will happen here [in Bunia]. We are determined not to let things get out of our hands. We believe there will be disturbances but we are very much equipped and we have the manpower to deal with them," said Isberg.
While Isberg would not say exactly when troops would head into the area around Bunia, he said it was unlikely before all Pakistani troops had arrived.
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