21 January 2016•Update: 22 January 2016
NEW YORK
Deliberate attacks on United Nations and associated personnel claimed 51 lives in 2015, the UN Staff Union reported Thursday.
Among those killed were 27 peacekeepers and 24 civilian staff, the labor union said in a press release.
For the second year in a row, Mali was the deadliest assignment for the UN, with 25 personnel killed in ambushes.
The incident with the most casualties also occurred in Mali, when an ambush against a UN peacekeeping escort on July 2 killed six soldiers.
That was followed on Aug. 7 by the deaths of four UN contractors at a hotel siege by gunmen in Mali's capital, Bamako.
In the past four years, at least 207 UN staff members have been killed in deliberate attacks, according to the statement.
Last year's figures are down from 61 in 2014 and 58 in 2013.
The union called on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to establish a high-level panel to review evolving and emerging threats against UN staff.
"The panel should also review whether the current security framework and oversight mechanisms are meeting the needs of its personnel who often work at great personal risk," read the statement.
More than 106,000 uniformed and 16,000 civilian personnel serve in the UN's 16 peacekeeping operations worldwide.
