UN ceremony held at the cenotaph

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A ceremony in memory of those who have died while serving as UN peacekeepers has taken place in London.

The ceremony at the Cenotaph was led by the head of the British army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, who laid a wreath.

The event was in honour of the 2,337 UN personnel who have been killed on duty since 1948 - 95 of them British.

David Wardrop, chairman of the United Nations Association, urged remembrance of those who had "died in a country with which their own had no dispute".

Mr Wardrop said: "Let us remember those who have laid down their lives in lands far from their own to serve in peace.

"They chose to serve their country, their country chose them to serve the world - to serve us."

Several hundred people watch the wreath-laying ceremony while Whitehall was closed off to traffic. A one-minute silence was also observed shortly after 1300 BST.

More than 83,000 UN peacekeeping troops are currently serving in 18 UN operations around the world.