SA prepares soldiers for DRC
2005-01-19 08:45
Johannesburg - The first contingent of reservist soldiers will report on Wednesday for training as peacekeepers before being deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Army Infantry Formation said 177 volunteers from a number of reserve regiments would report for training on Wednesday.
A group of about 80 would leave by bus for combat readiness training at seven SA Infantry (7SAI) Battalion at Phalaborwa in Mpumalanga.
Others would be departing from Cape Town, Durban and Pietermaritzburg for the same destination.
Colonel Ray van Zanten, the senior staff officer of motorised reserves at the Infantry Formation, said the training would last two months.
Afterwards, the troops would have a short break with their families before gathering at De Brug, Bloemfontein, for mobilisation and deployment to the DRC.
They would go to the DRC for an uninterrupted six-month stint of peacekeeping under United Nations command.
During the deployment, the reservists would be attached to 7SAI, but their units would still be responsible for their pay and welfare.
The troops are from the following units: Cape Town Highlanders, Durban Regiment, Natal Carbineers, SA Irish, Transvaal Scottish, Johannesburg Regiment, Rand Light Infantry and Witwatersrand Rifles.
- SAPA