U.N. To Patrol Congo With New Fleet Of Drones

(dpa) - An uncrewed reconnaissance drone 'Luna X-2000' of the German producer EMT (filer of 2001/2002). The United Nations have requested the UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to be deployed in Iraq. The reconnaissance s... (dpa) - An uncrewed reconnaissance drone 'Luna X-2000' of the German producer EMT (filer of 2001/2002). The United Nations have requested the UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to be deployed in Iraq. The reconnaissance system can send video and data from the lightweight glider to the ground control station (GCS) in real-time. The German government will send off 20 soldiers to Iraq to operate the system and support the UN weapons inspectors. The drone is very useful for reconnaissance flights over hardly accessible territory. Luna X-2000 made its debut in Kosovo in April 2000 with the German KFOR troops. Photo by: DB EMT/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images MORE LESS
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KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — A top United Nations peacekeeping official says a new fleet of drones will be used to patrol Congo’s troubled east, where one rebel group was recently disarmed, but many more continue to occupy the area’s thick jungles.

U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous, in Congo for the maiden voyage of the five drones, said the unmanned aircraft will be “an essential tool” in the peacekeeping mission’s military plan. Now that the M23 rebel group has been defeated, he said the U.N. needs to turn its attention to other rebel militias operating in eastern Congo.

After years of criticism for alleged inaction, the U.N. has taken a more aggressive role in Congo’s conflict, and a special U.N. brigade was instrumental in helping to defeat the M23 rebel group last month.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The file photo above shows an unmanned drone like the kind the UN at one point requested to fly over Iraq.

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