The United Nations office of internal investigations on Monday accused 41 UN peacekeepers who were deployed in the Central African Republic (CAR) of sexual exploitation and abuse. 
Sixteen of the peacekeepers are from Gabon and 25 from Burundi. 
The seven-month investigation was carried out with investigators from Gabon and Burundi. It is now up to those governments to prosecute their soldiers, the UN investigative office said. 
"The investigators relied primarily on the testimony of possible victims and witnesses given the lack of medical, forensic or any other physical evidence," the UN investigative office said in a statement. 
The UN investigation identified by 45 victims of sexual exploitation and abuse, including 25 minors. 
The incidents took place in 2014 and 2015 and the investigation began in April.
The UN interviewed139 possible victims. Eight paternity suits have been filed against the peacekeepers. 
A large number of potential victims, who were not able to identify perpetrators or provide corroborating evidence, have been ruled out, the UN said. 
The UN has had 12,000 peacekeepers deployed since April 2014 in the Central African Republic, which suffers from sectarian conflicts and internal fighting that erupted after the overthrow of President Fracois Bozize in early 2013.

Source: QNA