While peacekeeping carries a high cost in terms of lives lost, it also brings an enormous return in lives saved, according to the United Nations Secretary-General.

Ban Ki-moon on Thursday spoke at the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, marked every 29 May, to honour what he described as their “courage, dedication, and professionalism”.

120,000 women and men currently serve the UN as peacekeepers in what the Secretary-General called “some of the most dangerous places on earth.”

Stephanie Coutrix reports.

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