Sudan conflict spilling into oil-rich Abyei. South Sudan postpones its December 2024 election by two years

THE WORLD must not forget what is happening in South Sudan and Abyei, an oil-rich area on the border of South Sudan and Sudan. South Sudan postponed its first elections scheduled for December. Read more below.

Report from defenceWeb
Dated 07 November 2024 - full copy:

 Sudan conflict spilling into Abyei

UNISFA peacekeepers on humanitarian duty. Picture: United Nations.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) this week heard ongoing conflict in Sudan is “exacerbating instability” in Abyei, a 10 000 plus square kilometre contested area between Sudan and the world’s youngest country, South Sudan.

According to the world body, which has a peacekeeping mission on the ground in the oil-rich area, Abyei is claimed by both sides – RSF (Rapid Support Forces) and the Sudan Armed Force (SAF). The UN mission – UNISFA (UN Interim Security Force for Abyei) was first deployed in June 2011 and currently has 4 190 uniformed members and 3 743 civilians on its personnel strength.

Martha Pobee, Assistant Secretary-General for Africa at the UN Department of Peace Operations, told ambassadors on the Security Council the Sudan war continues to have a profound impact on the security, economic and humanitarian situations in South Sudan and Sudan.

Since the power struggle between rival militaries in Sudan began last April, Abyei and its neighbours have grappled with disruptions in oil production and surging refugee arrivals. These setbacks left already stretched resources in South Sudan under greater strain, with thousands of refugees enduring shortages of clean water, food and healthcare services.

Pobee highlighted continued proliferation of arms and heightened tensions, as observed with the recent incursion of RSF combatants into Abyei’s Aman-Aquak and Mijak counties, with reports of looting.

“The movement of armed groups is compounding the fragile security situation in South Sudan and Abyei,  particularly in relation to the pre-existing tensions between the Twic Mayardit and Ngok Dinka communities across Warrap state and Abyei,” she said.

Also this week, the African Union (AU) by way of its special envoy on the prevention of genocide and mass atrocities, added its condemnation of the ongoing Sudan conflict.

A statement has Adama Dieng saying reports of “grave crimes” including mass killing, summary executions, sexual assault, abduction, torture and looting have emerged despite a telecommunication black-out. As special envoy he urges the leaders of the two main fighting forces General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and General Mohamed Dagalo “Hemedti” to de-escalate the fighting and, among others, refrain from targeting civilians.

View original: https://www.defenceweb.co.za/african-news/sudan-conflict-spilling-into-abyei/

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Related reports

From Al Jazeera 

Dated 14 September 2024 - excerpt:

South Sudan postpones December election by two years

Government says it needs more time to complete a census, draft a permanent constitution and register political parties.

President Salva Kiir, who has led South Sudan since it became independent from Sudan in 2011, had promised to hold elections in 2024 

[File: Gregorio Borgia/AP Photo]

South Sudan’s government has announced it is postponing long-delayed general elections until December 2026, citing a lack of preparedness. This is the second time the country, which gained independence in 2011, is postponing elections and extending a transitional period that started in February 2020. 

Full story: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/9/14/south-sudan-postpones-december-election-by-two-years

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From What's In Blue 

Dated 06 November 2024 - excerpt:

South Sudan: Briefing and Consultations

An expected focus of tomorrow’s [07 November] meeting is the 13 September decision by the signatories to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) to extend the transitional period by 24 months. The decision postponed again the country’s first post-independence elections, which were scheduled for December 2024, until December 2026, and extended the transitional period until February 2027. The original transitional period outlined in the R-ARCSS was set to end in February 2023; it had been extended until February 2025 through a roadmap adopted in August 2022. (For background and more information, see the brief on South Sudan in our November 2024 Monthly Forecast.)

Full story: https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/whatsinblue/2024/11/south-sudan-briefing-and-consultations-26.php

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From The Conversation 

By Steven C. Roach

Dated 08 November 2024 - excerpt:

Salva Kiir: South Sudan’s president fought for independence, but then fuelled division, violence and corruption

Salva Kiir Mayardit has served as South Sudan’s president since the country’s independence in 2011. South Sudan’s secession from Sudan came on the heels of a long and bloody civil war that resulted in a referendum on independence. The initial optimism about the new state faded within two years when Kiir fell out with his vice-president, Riek Machar. The resulting civil war displaced some four million people and killed an estimated 388,000 people. With the two warring sides unable to reach agreement, the government postponed elections indefinitely in 2015 amid continuing civil strife.

Full story: https://theconversation.com/salva-kiir-south-sudans-president-fought-for-independence-but-then-fuelled-division-violence-and-corruption-242747

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From The East African 

By Garang Malak

Dated 08 November 2024 - excerpt:

South Sudan holdouts agree to resume peace talks in Nairobi

President Ruto says parties to the South Sudan peace process have agreed to resume mediation

Kenya's President William Ruto makes remarks, during the swearing-in ceremony of his new Deputy President, Kithure Kindiki, at the Kenya International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi on November 1, 2024. Kindiki is an academic turned politician who was thrust into the limelight when he defended his boss President William Ruto at the International Criminal Court. The 52-year-old millionaire served as interior minister for more than two years before taking over as deputy president on November 1, 2024 following the historic impeachment of his predecessor, Rigathi Gachagua. (Photo by SIMON MAINA/Agence France-Presse (AFP)/AFP

South Sudan’s holdout groups, the non-signatories to the 2018 peace agreement, have agreed to resume peace talks in Nairobi after months of expressing security concerns and dissatisfaction with the process. This development follows Kenyan President William Ruto’s visit to Juba on Wednesday, where he held talks with President Salva Kiir, First Vice President Riek Machar and other key stakeholders in the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU).

Full story: https://www.zawya.com/en/economy/africa/south-sudan-holdouts-agree-to-resume-peace-talks-in-nairobi-a3ontus8

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South Sudan corruption: ‘South Sudanese have not benefited from oil revenues’-EU Ambassador

"South Sudan is a textbook example of a resource curse, where the profits from oil have not benefited the people at large and they have been largely wasted and misused. Tragically, many of the renewable and sustainable resources the country has on the other hand have been neglected over the past decades. I am thinking particularly of the agricultural potential and the amazing biodiversity of the country.” -EU Amb. Olkkonen. Read more.

From Radio Tamazuj JUBA CITY
Dated Friday, 10 May 2024 - here is a full copy:

‘South Sudanese have not benefited from oil revenues’-EU Ambassador

Ambassador Timo Olkkonen, the Head of the Delegation of the European Union to South Sudan speaking at a function to mark European Day at Notos Restaurant in Juba. (Photo: Radio Tamazuj)

The Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of South Sudan on Thursday said the people of South Sudan have not benefited from the proceeds from crude oil which is the country’s largest export.

Ambassador Timo Olkkonen who is the Head of the Delegation of the European Union to South Sudan was speaking in Juba at a ceremony to mark European Day and qualified South Sudan as a textbook example of a resource curse.

He said fossil-based technology is old fashioned as modern and more environmentally friendly ways to produce energy exist, and that if left unaddressed, continued fossil fuel usage will possibly contribute to our extinction as a species with climate change taking effect.

“That is not to say that we should not appreciate the role of oil in South Sudan. You would be blind not to understand its importance. But South Sudan is a textbook example of a resource curse, where the profits from oil have not benefited the people at large and they have been largely wasted and misused,” Amb. Olkkonen stated. “Tragically, many of the renewable and sustainable resources the country has on the other hand have been neglected over the past decades. I am thinking particularly of the agricultural potential and the amazing biodiversity of the country.”

He added: “It is said that every crisis is an opportunity, so perhaps the recent issues with oil exports could redirect focus on these other cleaner engines of economic growth and you cannot argue that the potential is not there.”

The EU envoy said they recently joined several members of the international community in calling on the government not to tax aid and welcomed South Sudan’s removal of taxes on humanitarian aid and exemption of UN agencies from taxes.

“I welcome the fact that the government has confirmed that this indeed is not the intention and I cannot emphasize enough but what matters is implementation,” Olkkonen said. “Anything short of that would be a disaster for the people of South Sudan and cause reputational damage to the country itself.”

On the peace process, the envoy said the enthusiasm for the conduct of general elections in South Sudan has subsided as parties to the agreement have missed key timelines during the implementation of the peace accord.

“I was enthusiastic about the prospect of engaging in and supporting the preparations for elections and a new constitution. We have been supporting those processes politically and also through our development cooperation. Indeed a new project on electoral support was launched last August,” Amb. Olkkonen said. “I have to confess however that that enthusiasm has since subsided. Over the past year, we witnessed deadline after deadline of the Peace agreement’s Roadmap being missed. A month ago, we read the assessment of the UN Secretary General of the level of preparedness of the country to hold elections concluding that the parties must commit to taking urgent steps to achieve a critical mass of implementation necessary for the peaceful conduct of free, fair, and credible elections.”

He said despite disappointments, he still thinks the prospects of a first permanent constitution and the first elections of an independent country are of the kind that should evoke patriotism and enthusiasm.

“We hope that the ongoing processes like the UNMISS-supported interparty dialogue or the Kenyan mediation efforts will very soon bear fruits in this regard and that the stakeholders come together to forge a consensus” Olkkonen stated.

For his part, South Sudan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Monday Suraya Kumba said the country is satisfied with the bilateral ties between the EU and its member states in many developmental and economic sectors.

“We are also looking forward to engaging with the European Union and member states in other areas such development of the mineral sector, development of agriculture sector, development of the industrial sector, capacity building and climate change among others,” he said. “I would like to reassure you of our commitment as a government to continue meeting the needs of our people, to continue engaging different partners to the upcoming engagement political economic engagement in the country which includes the upcoming elections.”

“We are looking forward to working closely with the EU to gain support to achieve this overall objective,” Amb. Kumba added.

View original: https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/south-sudanese-have-not-benefited-from-oil-revenues-eu-ambassador

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Further reading

UK Foreign Office's 'no travel' list with 24 countries UK tourists urged to avoid

Daily Record, James Rodger & Nicola Roy, Fri, 10 May 2024, 3:26 pm BST.

Birmingham Live reports that the UK Gov Foreign Office is currently advising against travel, or all but essential travel, to 24 destinations on the 'black list': Afghanistan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, and Niger, North Korea, Palestinian territories, Russia, Somalia, Somaliland, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela, Yemen.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/foreign-offices-no-travel-list-142602539.html

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South Sudan: UNMISS condemns attack on aid convoy in Aniydi Payam of Bor South County of Jonglei State

Akol Miyen Kuol 

@AkolMiyenKuol on X writes: "#SouthSudan

leading cartoonist @AdijaAcuil, has really painted the current state of the nation. The govt must protect the civil population and their properties wherever they are".

Credit: Cartoonist @AdijaAcuil Source:

https://twitter.com/AkolMiyenKuol/status/1754490601125347542

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Africa Press Release via APO and Zany.com
By United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) 
Dated Friday, 9 February 2024 - here is a copy in full:

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) condemns attack on humanitarian convoy near Bor, Jonglei

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) strongly condemns an attack on a humanitarian convoy that was being escorted by peacekeepers in Aniydi Payam of Bor South County of Jonglei State.

As the convoy passed through Macdit, 60 kilometres from Bor town, a group of armed men emerged from the bushes and one opened fire on the UN vehicles. An UNMISS vehicle was damaged, but fortunately there were no casualties. UNMISS peacekeepers returned fire and repelled the attackers.

“This attack threatened the lives of humanitarians delivering vital assistance to communities in need as well as peacekeepers providing protection. It is utterly unacceptable,” said Nicholas Haysom, the Secretary General’s Special Representative to South Sudan and head of UNMISS.

“We appreciate the response of the Government of Jonglei State who rapidly dispatched a joint protection team of local forces to the location to provide support. It is important that a thorough investigation takes place and that the perpetrators are held accountable,” he said.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

View original: https://www.zawya.com/en/press-release/africa-press-releases/the-united-nations-mission-in-south-sudan-unmiss-condemns-attack-on-humanitarian-convoy-near-bor-jonglei-bvnj6u8x

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Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps Departs for S. Sudan

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: Any attack on a peacekeeper constitutes a war crime. Sadly, the bodies of two UN peacekeepers, one from Ghana and the other from Pakistan, were flown home from South Sudan last week. I have documented news of hundreds of peacekeepers being murdered in Sudan and South Sudan. They gave their lives to protect a thankless lot. 

Sudanis and aid orgs on social media are demanding the international community to help. It is time they pressure African leaders and African Union for help. To paraphrase the previous prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo: the international community is like a unicorn, everyone knows what a unicorn looks like but it doesn't exist.   

Over the last 60-70+ years, millions of people outside Africa have reached out to help those in Africa less fortunate than themselves. I guess there has come a time when many of those who are still alive couldn't be more disappointed in South Sudan after all the hard work, goodwill and money freely given to help them on their feet. Money to pay for aid, protection and organisations such as the United Nations and the ICC comes from the pockets of hardworking taxpayers in developed countries across the world. 

Sudan and South Sudan have had enough time to get their house in order. The world will not forget them but can't afford to subsidise them forever. Time marches on, the world changes. Russia is at war with Ukraine. Israel is at war with Gaza. The US, UK and French navies are stationed in the Red Sea to protect trade routes. Europe has war at its door. The US has bigger fish to fry. The UK is in the crosshairs of Russia. Foreign aid budgets will need to be cut and illegal migrants stamped out. Sudan and South Sudan are rich enough to pay their own way and look after their own. Tough love is in order.

From News First
Written by Staff Writer    
Dated Tuesday, 06 February 2024, 2:16 PM - here is a copy in full:

Army Medical Corps Departs for South Sudan

COLOMBO (News 1st); The 10th contingent of the Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps (SLAMC) departed Sri Lanka early this morning (06 February), to assume duties at the Level-2 SRIMED Hospital in the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

The 10th South Sudan bound contingent, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel D.M.D.J Dissanayake RSP USP and Second in Command, Major N.I Rathnayake, comprises 64 Army personnel, including 14 Army Officers, 01 Naval Officer and 49 Other Ranks.

Representing the Commander of the Army, Major General P.A.C. Fernando USP, Colonel Commandant, SLAMC and Director General Army Health Services, Brigadier G.L.S.W Liyanage USP psc, Director, Directorate of Overseas Operations, Brigadier W.A.U.S Wanasekara RWP USP, Centre Commandant, SLAMC and other Senior Officers bid farewell to the contingent at the Bandaranaike International Airport.

View original: https://www.newsfirst.lk/2024/02/06/army-medical-corps-departs-for-south-sudan/

Related

FROM AFP NEWS 

Sudan Conflict: $4.1 Billion Needed For Humanitarian Aid In 2024

Wednesday, 7 February 2024

https://www.barrons.com/news/sudan-conflict-4-1-billion-needed-for-humanitarian-aid-in-2024-35f3c888

FROM UN NEWS

UN appeals for $4.1 billion in aid for war-torn Sudan and refugee-hosting countries

Wednesday, 7 February 2024

The United Nations on Wednesday urged countries not to forget millions of people caught up in the war between rival militaries in Sudan, as it called for $4.1 billion to help stave off famine and help those who have fled into neighbouring countries. “Half of Sudan’s population, 25 million people, needs humanitarian assistance,” Martin Griffiths, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, told journalists in Geneva. 

The appeal comprises two key components: the $2.7 billion Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, targeting 14.7 million people within Sudan, and the $1.4 billion Regional Refugee Response Plan, aimed at assisting 2.7 million people in five countries surrounding Sudan. 

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) will manage the response in Sudan, while the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) will lead the regional initiative. 

Full story: https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/02/1146317

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