Südsudan/Sudan (Abyei)

The Security Council today deplored the failure by the governments of Sudan and South Sudan to redeploy their troops from the disputed Abyei area and urged the two countries to do so immediately and without preconditions.

Sudan’s army said on Friday it will not withdraw troops from Abyei unless a deal signed with South Sudan on managing the hotly-contested region is fully implemented. On 6 October, the United Nations reported that neither Sudan nor South Sudan have fulfilled their pledges to withdraw their troops from the border region of Abyei, which is claimed by both.

Sudan has pledged to withdraw its army from the contested region of Abyei following the full deployment of UN peacekeepers as South Sudan urged the UN Security Council to give Khartoum an ultimatum on the issue.

Sudanese government troops remain in the disputed border region of Abyei, in contempt of a deadline agreed to by northern and southern officials that all troops would withdraw from the area by last Friday. In public remarks, Sudanese officials have been intransigent—and misleading—about why the deadline was not met.

Sudan government troops have yet to comply with the first phase of a withdrawal schedule aimed at demilitarizing the disputed Abyei area that sits between Sudan and South Sudan. According to the timeline, signed by Sudanese and South Sudanese government officials two weeks ago, the northern Sudan Armed Forces, or SAF, should have withdrawn out of Abyei town by the end of last week. Southern and U.N. sources say that SAF remain in Abyei town.

The Sudanese government on Wednesday dismissed last week’s announcement by a senior United Nations official of a deal reached between Sudan and South Sudan on withdrawing troops from the contested region of Abyei.

Sudan and newly independent South Sudan have agreed to withdraw their troops from the disputed town of Abyei by the end of the month, the UN says. The deputy head of UN peacekeeping, Edmond Mulet, says the deal was brokered by the African Union at talks in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.

Sudan has reaffirmed rejection to the appointment of any employee of the outgoing UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) in the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).

The top United Nations peacekeeping official today reported that more than 500 troops with the new UN mission in the disputed Abyei area of Sudan have been deployed and both of the contesting sides appear committed to avoiding combat and willing to withdraw in favour of the blue helmets. … “I am pleased to report that as of yesterday, 521 of the authorized 4,200 military personnel in UNISFA have been deployed,” Mr. Le Roy said adding that he expected to have an operating capacity of 1,200 troops by the end of July.

United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has appointed a commander for the new U.N. peacekeeping force in Sudan's contested Abyei region. The U.N. said Wednesday that Mr. Ban has named Lieutenant General Tadesse Werede Tesfay of Ethiopia as head of mission and commander of the force.