Kinshasa/Nairobi (dpa) - A 120-strong Nigerian contingent has been withdrawn from the United Nations mission in DRCongo after 11 police officers were accused of sexual misconduct, a UN official in Kinshasa confirmed Monday.
"Apparently, the Nigerian government has made its decision. All units are seconded to the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) but remain under the command of their governments,'' a MONUC spokesperson said.
Nigerian police inspector Mike Okiro is currently in the Congolese capital and is expected to escort the entire contingent back to Nigeria for disciplinary action according to news reports.
The worlds largest peacekeeping operation has been under pressure follow a scathing UN report earlier this year detailing sexual abuse allegations against UN peacekeepers.
Some peacekeepers and civilian members of the mission were accused of rape, paedophilia and exchanging money and food for sex with women and children, some as young as twelve years old. Sixty-three peacekeepers were subsequently expelled from the central African country and repatriated to their countries. dpa ebk ds
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