From now on, protecting security in Liberia is back in the hands of the country's own security forces. The UN's UNMIL mission that did the job for the last 13 years will now play only a small support role.
On Thursday June 30, the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) handed over responsibility for security to the West African country. UNMIL took control of security in Liberia after devastating back-to-back civil wars that left hundreds of thousands dead and displaced many thousands more. Since the launch of a peacekeeping mission in September 2003, UNMIL has been responsible for the country's security. It has worked to rebuild police and military forces from scratch and disarmed rebels. DW spoke to Waldemar Vrey, the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for UNMIL, on the challenges ahead.
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