Südsudan

The U.S. government has imposed sanctions on South Sudan’s First Vice President Taban Deng Gai, accusing him of serious human rights abuses and trying to derail the country’s peace process.

South Sudan’s main coalition of donors are calling on leaders to urgently implement remaining tasks of the peace deal before the February 22, 2020 deadline expires. On Saturday, the United States, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the main countries that have funded peace negotiations in South Sudan, said the country is running out of time to create the transitional unity government.

South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir on Thursday pardoned dozens of prisoners including a prominent economist jailed for giving interviews to foreign media, saying it was a goodwill gesture to rejuvenate the country’s stalled peace process.

In South Sudan, since 2004, the United Nations has destroyed over a million explosive devices, including landmines and cluster munitions, scattered across the country from decades of conflict.

South Sudan President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar agreed on Tuesday, December 17 to form a unity government by a February deadline, as they face international censure over faltering peace talks.

Extending the deadline for the establishment of a unity government in South Sudan has helped maintain a ceasefire but also disillusioned many citizens, the Security Council heard on Tuesday. David Shearer, head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), briefed ambassadors on developments towards the new administration, amid ongoing humanitarian concerns worsened by recent flooding.

The United States imposed sanctions on two senior South Sudanese officials it accused of fomenting conflict, the U.S. Treasury Department announced on Monday in its latest move to pressure the country’s politicians to form a unity government.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has had an enormous positive impact on the daily lives of hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese people. One of the most important issues concerning UNMISS is the protection of civilians (POC), which has created a dilemmas for the mission.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has expressed concerns over the recent clashes in the country, days after it deployed peacekeepers to end violence in Western Lakes state. … “These clashes in areas that have been relatively calm for many months is worrying,” remarked David Shearer, the head of UNMISS.