A UN evacuation attempt in South Sudan resulted in several deaths when a helicopter was shot down, including the death of a crew member and South Sudanese troops. President Salva Kiir reported a second helicopter crash that killed all aboard. The incident raises concerns about the fragile peace accord, amidst ongoing violence between armed factions.
In South Sudan, a United Nations evacuation operation was tragically disrupted by gunfire, resulting in multiple casualties. A statement from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (Unmiss) reported the death of one crew member on a UN helicopter, along with several fatalities among South Sudanese troops during the evacuation in the Upper Nile region.
President Salva Kiir indicated that another UN helicopter managed to take off post-attack, but it crash-landed, killing all passengers aboard. The UN has yet to corroborate President Kiir’s account but noted that the assault on the helicopter could potentially be classified as a war crime.
Ongoing clashes in Upper Nile jeopardize an already tenuous peace agreement between President Kiir and Vice-President Riek Machar. The prior civil war, which erupted from their rivalry in 2013, resulted in 400,000 deaths and displaced 2.5 million individuals. Although a peace accord was established in 2018, tensions remain high due to ongoing violence between government forces and the White Army militia, which previously allied with Machar.
Nicholas Haysom, the head of Unmiss, described the attack on UN personnel as “utterly abhorrent” and emphasized the organization’s regret over the recent losses, including the South Sudanese forces that were meant to be extracted. President Kiir confirmed that Gen. Majur Dak, who commanded troops in Nasir, was one of the casualties.
Concerns regarding a potential return to war are rising in light of recent detentions of Machar’s allies, which include the oil minister and a senior army general. Following the attack, President Kiir urged citizens to remain calm, asserting, “I have said time and again that our country would not go back to war. Let no one take the law into their own hands. The government, which I lead, will handle this crisis.” South Sudan became the world’s newest sovereign state in 2011 after its secession from Sudan.
The violent incident during the UN evacuation highlights the heightened tensions in South Sudan and the fragile state of peace in the region. The direct consequences of this event could exacerbate existing hostilities between factions, creating fears of a resurgence in civil conflict. It calls for immediate attention to avoid further escalation and to uphold the fragile peace established since the last civil war.
Original Source: www.bbc.com
