The population of Tabou 480 km south-west of Abidjan on Friday 30 May 2014 paid homage to the courage and self-abnegation of seven Niger soldiers of UN Peacekeeping Force who were killed in the line of duty when their patrol ran into an ambush laid by unidentified gunmen in the village of Para near the border town of tai in the south-west of Cote d'Ivoire on 8 June 2012.



The homage was paid in a ceremony attended by several partners, local administrative, political, military, religious and traditional authorities as well as representatives of youth and women's groups of the area, The head of the UN delegation Armand Bessala, on behalf of the UN Secretary-general, recalled the sacrifice made by the Blue helmets and called on the people to spare a kind thought in their memory.

The secretary-general of the Prefecture of Tabou, Koffi Kouadio expressed gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice made by the Niger soldiers in defending the lives of the people of Tabou. "There can be no greater sacrifice than giving one's life to save another under unfortunate circumstances. The Niger Blue helmets did just that when they lost their lives during a patrol in Para," he said.

It would be noted that officers of the UN Police, military observers and the Niger Battalion in the area enriched the day's programme by several exposes, cultural, artistic and theatre performances on the role of the Peacekeeping Force.