New Delhi: The United Nations will posthumously honor two Indian peacekeepers for making the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty on Friday on the International UN Peacekeeping Day.Lance Havildar Harbhajan Singh, who served with the United Nations Organization for Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), and Naib Subedar Sujit Kumar Pradhan, posted with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), will be posthumously awarded the prestigious Dag Hammarskjöld Medal by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.Guterres will also present the 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award to Major Abhilasha Barak of India for her extraordinary contribution towards women’s empowerment and gender sensitization during her deployment with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. Widely recognized as the first woman combat helicopter pilot of the Indian Army, Major Baraka is currently serving in Lebanon as the Commander of the Women Engagement Team (FET) under UNIFIL.Major Barak will be the third Indian recipient of this prestigious honor after Major Suman Gawani and Major Radhika Sen, who were honored for their commendable work while serving in UN peacekeeping missions.Nearly 180 Indian peacekeepers have made the supreme sacrifice while serving under the UN flag, the highest number ever from any troop contributing country.India is the second largest contributor to UN peacekeeping forces, with over 4,200 military and police personnel – including 155 women – currently serving in UN peacekeeping operations in missions in Abyei, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, Somalia, South Sudan and Western Sahara. Currently, more than 50,000 civilian, military and police peacekeepers are serving under the United Nations flag in peacekeeping missions in some of the world’s most complex environments.