UN Expresses Condolences over the Death of Corporal Rico
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The United Nations (UN) has expressed condolences over the death of Head Soldier (Praka) Rico Pramudia, an Indonesian soldier in the UNIFIL peacekeeping mission who suffered serious injuries from an attack in southern Lebanon at the end of March.
UN Deputy Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix expressed that he is “deeply saddened” to announce the death of “a courageous peacekeeper”.
“Corporal Rico Pramudia from Indonesia, who suffered critical injuries on 29 March, has passed away due to his wounds. I extend my deepest condolences to his family, friends, the Indonesian National Armed Forces, and the Government of Indonesia,” Lacroix wrote on the social media platform X on Friday.
Previously, UNIFIL announced the death of Praka Rico (31), after he was treated for nearly a month in a hospital in Beirut due to his severe injuries.
“UNIFIL is saddened by the death of Praka Rico Pramudia, who was seriously injured due to a projectile explosion at its headquarters in Adchit Al Qusayr on the night of 29 March,” UNIFIL stated on X.
Following the UNIFIL announcement, Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs once again strongly condemned the Israeli attack that led to the fall of the Indonesian peacekeeper.
Indonesia also continues to urge the UN to conduct a thorough, transparent, and accountable investigation to uncover the facts and ensure accountability for this incident.
With the death of Praka Rico, Indonesia has now lost four TNI soldiers while serving with UNIFIL in southern Lebanon in the past month.
The previous TNI soldiers who fell were Praka Farizal Rhomadhon, who was killed by artillery fire on 29 March in the same incident that initially injured Praka Rico.
Then on 30 March, two TNI personnel, namely Captain Inf Zulmi Aditya Iskandar and Sergeant Major Muhammad Nur Ikhwan, were killed when the convoy they were escorting was attacked.
The series of attacks that occurred on 29-30 March and 3 April also resulted in seven TNI soldiers being injured, in addition to Praka Rico.
In addition to Indonesia, France has also lost two of its soldiers serving with UNIFIL amid escalating tensions in southern Lebanon after their patrol was attacked on 18 April.