Oprørt FN-generalsekretær tager stærkt afstand fra drabene, som kommer efter et angreb på nomadefolk, hvor 85 omkom, de fleste kvinder og børn i det ustabile (og olierige) land, som udviklingsminister Christian Friis Bach (R) vil forlene med omfattende dansk bistand.
NEW YORK, 9 April 2013: (UN News Service): UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, his Special Representative in South Sudan, Hilde F. Johnson, and the United Nations Security Council Tuesday strongly condemned the killing of at least 12 people working with the UN peacekeeping mission in Jonglei State.
“The Secretary-General is appalled by the attack,” his spokesperson said. “He condemns in the strongest terms the killing of five Indian peacekeepers and two UNMISS (UN Mission in South Sudan) national staff and five civilian staff contractors.”
Mr. Ban “recalls that the killing of peacekeepers is a war crime that falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court,” the spokesperson said
“He calls on the Government of South Sudan to bring the perpetrators of this crime to justice,” the statement continued.
“At least nine additional peacekeepers and accompanying civilians were injured, and some remain unaccounted for,” according to the latest information from UNMISS.
The UN Mission said the attack was “an ambush by unidentified assailants” near the settlement of Gumuruk in Jonglei, an area frequently patrolled as part of an effort to provide protection to civilians, as well as providing armed escorts to humanitarian aid convoys.
“This attack will not deter UNMISS and its peacekeepers from working to protect vulnerable communities in South Sudan, said Ms. Johnson. “UNMISS is determined to continue its work in supporting authorities ensure peace.”
The UN has been increasingly vocal in recent weeks about the need for increased protection of civilians in Jonglei state.
South Sudan faces considerable security challenges, in particular, in Jonglei state and the tri-state area of Lakes, Warrap and Unity.
Last week, the UN mission released its findings into a probe of a cattle raid on an 8 February attack near Walgak in West Akobo in which at least at least 85 cattle herders, mostly women and children, were killed.
According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the UNMISS investigation found that a group of armed men, allegedly members of the Murle community, attacked the Lou Nuer pastoralists (kvægnomader) as they were migrating to grazing areas.
UNMISS said the attack represented the highest single loss of life since an increase in inter-communal violence began several months ago.
Ms. Johnson urged the Government and the local communities to break the deadly cycle of violence spurred by inter-communal violence and attacks by armed groups.
“The destabilization of Jonglei must stop”, the former Norwegian minister for development stated.
