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10 March 2009
By Judith Martin
Wandering camels, huge pot holes and hair-raising local driving habits are all in a day’s work for a group of Sinai-based NZDF personnel.
The Kiwi truckies are usually behind the wheel of huge Volvos, driving around the Middle East in support of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) an organisation that monitors, from two camps in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, and works to prevent any treaty violations.
An independent organisation, the MFO numbers about 220 personnel, 600 of them civilians, from countries including New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Columbia, Fiji, France, Hungary, Norway and the United States.
New Zealand has been a member of the MFO since its inception in 1981. The NZDF contribution was originally helicopter support, but has grown over the years to become a 26-strong contingent providing mainly drivers, and driving instructors.
The drivers are amongst the NZDF’s best; they regularly receive commendations from the MFO commander for achieving 30,000 accident-free kilometres of driving, and their enjoyment of the work they do is obvious.
The sand drifts, endless stretches of desert, and relentless heat are to them more of a challenge than a hindrance. “Market day in the villages we pass through can be mayhem. You have to stay alert to anything. People just wander across the roads, and when the local kids hear a truck coming they’ll race out to see it. We always made sure we got a good night’s sleep though, so it’s no trouble staying alert,” says one driver.
The drivers supply all the outposts with fresh water, pick up goods from Israel and deliver them to the two camps (North and South) that the MFO is divided into.
North Camp is where most of the New Zealanders are based. It provides logistical and operational support for the force, members of which work from about 30 remote outposts split between three battalions and scattered along the length of the peninsula next to the Israeli border and the Gulf of Aqaba. It is just 40 km from the turbulent Gaza Strip.
The force mans checkpoint and observation posts, and monitors any alleged violations. Observers patrol the borders, especially near Gaza. Violations are investigated, and recommendations made to the MFO director general, who decides on further courses of action.
The MFO is a tri-Service mission, and New Zealand’s contribution to the force also includes a training and advisory team which provides the formal driving and operational training for the MFO. Force personnel come from their own countries with skills for their core tasks, and the Kiwis provide them with all license testing, unit driver training courses, and specialist courses, as well as defensive driving. They also provide senior personnel from contributing countries with skills to run their remote outposts.
SGT Johnny Wanoa, now the operations sergeant with 16 Field Regiment, is a driving instructor and served in the Sinai in 2005-2006.
“Working with personnel from 11 different countries meant that one of the biggest challenges we faced was being understood. We had interpreters but sometimes even they were a bit hard to understand. But that said, working with so many different militaries was also one of the best parts of the deployment. We got to see how other soldiers worked and did things.”
The high accident rate in the harsh Egyptian conditions was one of the reasons for the establishment of formal training for MFO drivers.
LTCOL Patrick Butterworth, the current Commanding Officer of the New Zealand MFO contingent says the conflict in Gaza was on everyone’s minds earlier this year.
“We were close enough to hear the bombs, but far enough away to be out of harm’s way. The war within Israel’s borders is part of the continuing struggle to establish a lasting peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, but it is not part of the MFO mandate to have any role there; instead we are continuing with our routine reporting of activity in the military exclusion zones of Sinai. “
He agrees that one of the main challenges New Zealand personnel face is the variety of languages spoken on the MFO base.
“Drivers need Spanish to talk to the Uruguay transport detachment, liaison officers need Arabic and Russian (to talk to the tourists), and the Deputy Chief Operations (Plans) needs Norwegian and American, whilst the RSM needs Fijian. We are all working hard on our Maori singing skills, too, since the cultural group is a strong part of our contingent’s identity.”
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This page was last reviewed on 23 March 2009 and is current.