Active peacekeepers

Fox_bat · 07-20-2007, 01:34 AM

Ladies and Gents,

Is there anyone on the board who is / was involved in peacekeeping duty either with UN Blue helmets or NATO? If so what were your experiences like, I mean peacekeeping and not attack mode i.e. Afghanistan

Would be great to share some experieces.

**Officer of Engineers** · 07-20-2007, 03:56 AM

I was UNPROFOR.

entropy · 07-20-2007, 08:11 AM

How are the rules of engagement applied for peacekeepers? When are they allowed to use force? I have read the rules but they aren't too clear to me, and some questions arise about their practical applications. I've heard that they sometimes are dangerous for the peacekeepers as they limit the capability to defend themselves.

**Officer of Engineers** · 07-20-2007, 08:37 AM

Typically speaking, you're not allowed to return fire unless directly aimed fire upon. Very easy to get around that. All fire are aimed fire. Most often, it's not the RoEs that's the problem but the amount of force you're allow to bring into a theatre. Yes, you might be armed but when you have a 9mm and the other guy got an anti-tank gun, you're not doing anything but getting the hell out of there and then report the bastard.

Fox_bat · 07-20-2007, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Officer of Engineers

I was UNPROFOR.

That must have been quite an experience.. there were quite a few fatalities I beleive amoung the UN contingent. Must have been quite horifying experience I guess. How long did you tour last?

Ucar · 07-20-2007, 09:02 AM

I was a member of the Turkish ISAF force.

The RoE as not to fire unless directly fired upon, and if possible disengage and return to base. This of course applied only when you are doing the "peacekeeping" part in your assigned area of operations.

Peacekeeping is a dirty, nasty job when you are on the ground.

Fox_bat · 07-20-2007, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Officer of Engineers

Typically speaking, you're not allowed to return fire unless directly aimed fire upon. Very easy to get around that. All fire are aimed fire. Most often, it's not the RoEs that's the problem but the amount of force you're allow to bring into a theatre. Yes, you might be armed but when you have a 9mm and the other guy got an anti-tank gun, you're not doing anything but getting the hell out of there and then report the bastard.

Correct.

Exactly what happened in Kosovo in 2004 the place expolded anyone and everyone was a traget UN & NATO combined. On patrol we had small caliber and 1 x mounted 50 Caliber on a semi armoured jeep and 1 or 2 APC were thre in total 5 vehicles as I remember. In this case many a times we didnt know who the hell was firing and at who some case at us some cases at each other and we were sometimes in the middle or on the sides and everyone took pot shots at us.

In the end after a RPG missed a Swedish APC everyone (us) basically ran from there and reported the incident. Everyone in the APC was sweating buckets, those who saw the round coming and miss atleast.

The French had some bad times in the North at that time and saw quite some action

**Officer of Engineers** · 07-21-2007, 00:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fox_bat

That must have been quite an experience.. there were quite a few fatalities I beleive amoung the UN contingent. Must have been quite horifying experience I guess. How long did you tour last?

Horrifying? Not anywhere near what we're suffering in Afghanistan right now. Still, we saw alot of section level combat. I've received fire and I've returned fire.

I've been shot at so many times that I did not flinch anymore when bullets fly by my head. You learn if there's a bullet for you, there's nothing you can do to stop it. By the same token, all other bullets are going to miss. Doesn't mean you're going to be stupid but it also means I'm not going to panic just because a gun went off.

All that, however, is a soldier's job and I don't have anything to complain about. What really ... hurt for a lack of better word ... is that grandmothers would turn away children just because they're not the same clan.

The thugs we can handle. The angry grandmothers who don't want enemy children in their sights? That's alot more difficult.

sappersgt · 07-21-2007, 01:30 AM

It's the children who always suffer. It's the children who pull on the heartstrings of even the hardest soldier. It's their faces that stay with us long after we've gone home.

glyn · 07-21-2007, 06:20 AM

OoE and sappersgt have it right on the money. The peacekeepers are the filling in the sandwich trying to keep the warring factions apart. As always it is the innocent who suffer. The peacekeepers want to do whats right, but the politics of the situation demands they do what's expedient, and that's not always the same thing. We all try our best, but are left with a feeling of discontent. Some have had to withdraw or face a firefight where the innocent would undoubtably have been at great risk, and that rankles. Unlike OoE, I was a very skilled flincher!

tankie · 07-21-2007, 08:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Officer of Engineers

Horrifying? Not anywhere near what we're suffering in Afghanistan right now. Still, we saw alot of section level combat. I've received fire and I've returned fire.

I've been shot at so many times that I did not flinch anymore when bullets fly by my head. You learn if there's a bullet for you, there's nothing you can do to stop it. By the same token, all other bullets are going to miss. Doesn't mean you're going to be stupid but it also means I'm not going to panic just because a gun went off.

All that, however, is a soldier's job and I don't have anything to complain about. What really ... hurt for a lack of better word ... is that grandmothers would turn away children just because they're not the same clan.

The thugs we can handle. The angry grandmothers who don't want enemy children in their sights? That's alot more difficult.

Aint it the truth , not quite the same scenario Ooe , but N/Ireland was similar whereby the Bri/army was/are attached to the Police for peace keeping duties ,, the parents would teach kids to hate , and hate they did .

07-20-2007, 01:34 AM	#1 (permalink)
Fox_bat *Military Professional* Join Date: 07-15-07 Location: Somewhere Posts: 17	Active peacekeepers Ladies and Gents, Is there anyone on the board who is / was involved in peacekeeping duty either with UN Blue helmets or NATO? If so what were your experiences like, I mean peacekeeping and not attack mode i.e. Afghanistan Would be great to share some experieces.

07-20-2007, 03:56 AM	#2 (permalink)
Officer of Engineers *Military Professional* Moderator Scotch taster Join Date: 08-06-03 Posts: 15,915 Country:	I was UNPROFOR. __________________ Chimo

07-20-2007, 08:11 AM	#3 (permalink)
entropy Senior Reader *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 03-19-07 Location: Belgium Posts: 1,628 Country:	How are the rules of engagement applied for peacekeepers? When are they allowed to use force? I have read the rules but they aren't too clear to me, and some questions arise about their practical applications. I've heard that they sometimes are dangerous for the peacekeepers as they limit the capability to defend themselves. __________________ If memory serves...

07-21-2007, 01:30 AM	#9 (permalink)
sappersgt *Military Professional* Join Date: 03-04-06 Location: Latitude 38 Longitude 112 Posts: 2,343 Country:	Suffer the children to come unto Me. It's the children who always suffer. It's the children who pull on the heartstrings of even the hardest soldier. It's their faces that stay with us long after we've gone home. __________________ Reddite igitur quae sunt Caesaris Caesari et quae sunt Dei Deo (Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things which are God's)

07-21-2007, 06:20 AM	#10 (permalink)
glyn *Military Professional* Join Date: 09-15-06 Location: Penzance, Cornwall UK Posts: 6,537	OoE and sappersgt have it right on the money. The peacekeepers are the filling in the sandwich trying to keep the warring factions apart. As always it is the innocent who suffer. The peacekeepers want to do whats right, but the politics of the situation demands they do what's expedient, and that's not always the same thing. We all try our best, but are left with a feeling of discontent. Some have had to withdraw or face a firefight where the innocent would undoubtably have been at great risk, and that rankles. Unlike OoE, I was a very skilled flincher! __________________ Semper in excretum. Solum profunda variat.

07-20-2007, 08:37 AM	#4 (permalink)
Officer of Engineers *Military Professional* Moderator Scotch taster Join Date: 08-06-03 Posts: 15,915 Country:	Typically speaking, you're not allowed to return fire unless directly aimed fire upon. Very easy to get around that. All fire are aimed fire. Most often, it's not the RoEs that's the problem but the amount of force you're allow to bring into a theatre. Yes, you might be armed but when you have a 9mm and the other guy got an anti-tank gun, you're not doing anything but getting the hell out of there and then report the bastard.

07-20-2007, 09:02 AM	#6 (permalink)
Ucar *Military Professional* Join Date: 06-19-07 Posts: 292 Country:	I was a member of the Turkish ISAF force. The RoE as not to fire unless directly fired upon, and if possible disengage and return to base. This of course applied only when you are doing the "peacekeeping" part in your assigned area of operations. Peacekeeping is a dirty, nasty job when you are on the ground.

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