United Nations peacekeepers in South Sudan knew of a case of mass abduction of at least 89 children in Upper Nile State for nearly an entire week before the matter was made public, a top official has revealed.

The UN Mission also made a "probable" determination of which armed group had abducted the children, even though it has never announced this in South Sudan, nor did the UN Children's agency, which has declined to name the group suspected of having committed the crime.

In remarks to the UN Security Council on Tuesday, UN Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous disclosed that peacekeepers in South Sudan learnt of the mass abduction on 15 February, six days before the UN Children's agency (UNICEF) announced and condemned the abduction of the children.

"On 15 February, UNMISS was informed that armed men, belonging probably to a Shilluk militia allied to the government, forcibly recruited at least 89 children from displaced camps in Malakal County, Upper Nile State," Ladsous stated, in remarks in French.

This would suggest that peacekeepers learnt of the incident on the same day that it took place; according to a UNICEF spokesman, the abductions started in Wau Shilluk on 15 February and continued into 16 February.

"Eyewitnesses told UNICEF that armed men surrounded the area and searched each house for boys older than 12 years old," Ladsous noted.

UNICEF condemned the recruitment of the child soldiers in a statement released 21 February.

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