BUJUMBURA, Oct 2: A contingent of about 225 Pakistan Army troops arrived here on Sunday to perform duties as UN peacekeepers in Burundi. Ethnic strife and rebellion claimed more than 200,000 lives over the past 12 years in Burundi, a tiny African state with a population of six million people.

Pakistan, the largest contributor to the peacekeeping missions, has a presence of some 1,200 troops in this land-locked country. Pakistani troops have also been performing in the engineering, medical and aviation fields in addition to peacekeeping operations.

Maj-Gen Aftab Ahmed, based in the General Headquarters, Rawalpindi, also arrived with the battalion aboard a chartered flight with an aim to have first-hand information about problems, if any, being faced by the troops. He was received by Col Hanif Khan at the Bujumbura airport.

The same plane later left with over 200 troops for Pakistan. Those troops were in Burundi for the past one year.

Talking to Dawn, Maj-Gen Aftab Ahmed said there were over 10,000 Pakistani troops and other military professionals performing peacekeeping duties under the United Nations in seven countries, including Burundi, neighbouring Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Ivory Coast.

Nepal, South Africa, Jordan, Mozambique, Kenya are the other countries whose troops are working in Burundi. Pakistani engineers have taken part in construction of the country’s infrastructure.

Burundi has been inching towards stability with August witnessing the end of a four-year transitional phase and swearing of Pierre Nkurunziza as president after his ‘Forces for the Defence of Democracy’ won the National Assembly and Senate elections earlier this year. On Sept 23 the last phase of the non-party local elections were held.

However, one of the important powerful groups ‘National Liberation Forces’ of ethnic leader Agathon Rwasa did not take part in the polls.