Kiwi to lead peacekeepers

Retreating Israeli troops were tearing down buildings when New Zealand peacekeepers reached Sinai in 1982. The desert peninsula, a nose of land wedged between Egypt and its invading neighbour, was pocked with landmines that shifted as rainfall spread over the punishing terrain.

Nearly four decades later, Egypt and Israel are friendly. But insurgents now range across the north of the peninsula, as tourists return to the beach resorts in the south. A plane crash killed 224 passengers and extremist group ISIS claimed responsibility.

Major General Evan Williams is also returning to the arid land he served in as military assistant to the commander in 1998.

The deputy chief of New Zealand’s Army will lead the Multinational Force and

Observers (MFO) and its 1150 troops from 13 countries, come December.

Both Egypt and Israel asked for a Kiwi to be put in charge of the peacekeeping mission, though Britain was next in line to fill the position.

Why New Zealand was favoured over the Brits, Defence Minister Ron Mark – also a Sinai veteran — won’t say. Williams was happy to answer the call, saying commanding the MFO is a privilege in his 35-year career.

A son of the army, Williams was born in Waiouru and entered the military as an officer, straight from school. He served in Bosnia in 1995 and saw ‘‘despair at its most significant’’ in Sumatra, Indonesia, when 100,000 died in the 2003 Boxing Day tsunami.

But it was in East Timor where the worst came. Private Leonard Manning, under Williams’ command, was shot and killed in an ambush by proindonesian militia in the jungle.