South Sudan

As hostilities escalate in southern Syria, civilian deaths continue to be reported and up to 66,000 people have now been displaced.  Many who fled towards the Jordanian border remain stranded in the desert with little access to humanitarian help.  Planned aid convoys will proceed as soon as the security situation allows.

Peace in South Sudan would only be sustainable through a fair and inclusive revitalized peace agreement that would take the root causes of the conflict into account, the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations told the Security Council today, as members of the 15-nation organ cautiously welcomed the rapprochement between the country’s President and former First Vice-President.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Vassily A. Nebenzia (Russian Federation):

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

A Bangladeshi peacekeeper from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan was killed today during an attack on a convoy delivering humanitarian aid to vulnerable civilians in Central Equatoria Province.  The Nepalese peacekeepers immediately returned fire and the assailants retreated into the forest.

The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court pressed the Security Council today to play a more active role in supporting the arrest and transfer of those suspected of mass-atrocity crimes in Darfur, a situation it had referred to The Hague-based tribunal more than 13 years ago.

Humanitarian organizations in South Sudan are responding to urgent needs of the estimated 50,000 people displaced in Leer, Mayendit and Koch Counties in Unity state amid a sharp escalation in fighting between the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), SPLA-in-Opposition and armed groups.

The Security Council voted this afternoon to renew for 45 days the sanctions it imposed in 2015 on those blocking peace in South Sudan, with the option of considering further measures — including an arms embargo — if fighting continues amid ongoing mediation efforts, or if there remains no viable political agreement.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern over the murder of three human rights defenders working with indigenous and peasants’ rights organizations in Guatemala during the last 10 days, calling for a prompt investigation into those and other attacks against rights defenders, and accountability for the perpetrators.