South Sudanese government forces restricted movements of United Nations peacekeepers after allegedly launching offensives near the Unity State capital Bentiu and attacking and burning villages in the area. The peacekeepers were so far unable to verify allegations about attacks on the villages.
In a statement to Radio Tamazuj, the UN Mission in South Sudan explained, “UNMISS has been dispatching patrols to assess the amount of fighting taking place near Bentiu in recent days, but the movements of those patrols have been restricted by government forces on a number of occasions.”
This comes after the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition accused the Juba government of committing atrocities in Unity State, torching various villages including Nhialdiu in late April. SPLM-IO controlled the Nhialdiu area prior to the latest government offensive. Speaking to Radio Tamazuj, a state official last week claimed the capture of Nhialdiu.
Joseph Contreras, acting UNMISS spokesman said, “UNMISS is aware of allegations made by the armed opposition and some civilians that villages have been attacked and burned in the vicinity of Nhialdiu during the recent fighting in that part of Unity State. The Mission is unable to verify those accusations but is planning to send a team shortly to investigate those charges.”
The UNMISS official was responding to an inquiry about whether the Mission was aware of the claims about the burning of villages in the Nhialdiu area and how it had responded to the latest violence in Unity State.
File photo
Related:
Juba claims capture of areas around Bentiu (1 May)