South Sudan

The UN said Wednesday that conflict had intensified in a region of South Sudan since a peace deal was signed, with hundreds of civilians raped or murdered by warring factions. The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said civilians had been "deliberately and brutally targeted" in Central Equatoria since the agreement was inked in September. … UNMISS said overall there had been a "significant decrease" in violence across the country since Kiir and Machar signed the deal.

The peace dividend from last year’s ceasefire in South Sudan is palpable, but political elites need to follow the example set by local communities on the ground if lasting progress is to be achieved, said the top UN official in the country on Tuesday.

South Sudan's government is offering to mediate between Sudan's ruling military council and the opposition, in return for Sudan's role mediating South Sudanese peace talks last year. … Kiir expects to host talks between the Sudanese military and opposition in Juba in the coming days, [South Sudan presidential minister Mayiik] Deng told VOA.

The UN Security Council on Thursday extended for a year an arms embargo and sanctions on South Sudan despite resistance from African countries, Russia and China.

The South Sudan government has urged the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to remove the sanctions against it. The world’s security body placed South Sudan in the sanctions list in 2015 following reports of gross human rights violations in the conflict that ravaged the country.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has concluded the week by harnessing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to support the nation, including by offering free medical services, encompassing SDG 3’s target on health coverage.

Now that the implementation of South Sudan’s shaky peace agreement has officially been delayed by six months, worries are mounting that a half year leaves enough time for things to go badly wrong in a country where distrust between the warring parties still runs deep.

South Sudan's warring parties will need more than a six-month extension approved last week before they can form a transitional government, says the country's president, Salva Kiir. In his first public remarks since the parties agreed to the extension last week, the president also accused rebel leader Riek Machar's SPLM-IO (Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition) of recruiting new fighters.

South Sudan has signed a contract with a U.S. lobbying firm, after cancelling an earlier deal with the same company that drew criticism from rights groups over its aims, documents showed.