{{An official of United Nations (UN), Hilde Johnson, has raised the alarm that the multinational peacekeeping force in South Sudan lacked sufficient troops and aircraft to protect civilians affected by fighting in the country’s eastern region.}}
A report by Reuters Monday claimed that tens of thousands of people have been uprooted by clashes between the army and rebel forces in Jonglei state.
Almost all of the 10,000 residents of Pibor town in Jonglei have fled their homes, aid agencies said, following looting by the state security forces and rebel threats to attack it.
Moreso, Sudanese army said on Sunday it killed more than 70 rebels of the revolutionary front, which attacked Al-Dandaro area in South Kordofan state.
“More than 70 of the rebels were killed and the rest fled the area,” Xinhua quoted Al-Sawarmy Khalid Saad, Sudanese army spokesman, as saying in a statement.
He added that the armed forces are still chasing the rebels and continuing the combing operations to ensure security and stability in the area.
Johnson, who is the head of the UN mission, said she has doubled the number of peacekeeping troops in Pibor.
“We cannot sustain a presence with the logistical capacity that we have, with the problems we have with air transport and by road. So, we cannot protect civilians in big, big, big numbers,” Johnson told Reuters.
The UN mission has 6,560 troops to cover a country the size of France with barely 300 kilometres of paved roads.
Seasonal rains have turned the region, where the government hopes to drill for oil with France’s Total, into a swamp, severing road access.
On April 9, gunmen ambushed and killed five UN peacekeepers and seven civilian staff in Jonglei.
Earlier this month, President Salva Kiir said he would punish ill-disciplined members of the security forces engaged in acts of violence against civilians in Jonglei and also those who gave the orders.
Johnson also dismissed criticism by a Dutch think-tank, the Clingendael Institute, which said the UN mission steered clear of confrontation with the government and failed to fulfill its role as a watchdog.
“If you come as an outsider with no history, and you come waving the whip, I can assure you that the outcome is not necessarily going to be the most positive one for your cause,” the Norwegian envoy said.
{wirestory}
Leave a Reply