APO News from Africa:
Statement by the Troika and Canada Regarding Continuing Violence in South Sudan:
The Troika and Canada are deeply concerned about recent actions taken by the government and by the armed opposition that exacerbate the immense security and related humanitarian crises in South Sudan. As South Sudanese across the country look forward to the Easter holiday, traditionally a time of reconciliation and redemption, they are confronted by an escalation in the conflict and an unprecedented expansion in hunger and malnutrition. Peace is painfully absent during this holy season.
Although President Salva Kiir Mayardit told IGAD Heads of State on March 25, as reflected in the IGAD Summit Communique, that he had agreed to announce a unilateral ceasefire, no such announcement has yet been made and government forces have not ceased military operations. On April 1, armed opposition leader Dr. Riek Machar Teny rejected a request by JMEC Chairperson Festus Mogae to issue a unilateral ceasefire.
We urge all leaders to take action to end the armed conflict in order to stop fighting that endangers civilians, worsens the humanitarian situation, and prevents them from resuming normal livelihoods. We are alarmed by credible reports of the following acts:
- On April 3, the SPLA and affiliated forces orchestrated an attack on the town of Pajok in the legacy state of Eastern Equatoria, killing civilians, including women and children, and forcing the displacement of thousands across the border to Uganda.
- On April 10, the SPLA attacked civilians in the town of Wau. The UN Mission in South Sudan reported that civilians were killed and injured in the violence, which also displaced thousands. While this incident followed an attack by armed opposition forces on an SPLA convoy, in which SPLA officers were killed, the government action was disproportionate and targeted civilians.
- On March 8 and March 18, soldiers affiliated with Riek Machar Teny’s armed opposition faction kidnapped three expatriate oil workers and killed three South Sudanese oil workers.
- On March 31, in Aburoc in legacy Upper Nile state, armed opposition soldiers affiliated with Riek Machar Teny’s faction assaulted humanitarian workers, while on April 3, in Melut, also in Upper Nile, National Security Service officials detained and severely beat two aid workers.
The Troika and Canada strongly condemn these actions and all other attacks upon unarmed civilians by the warring parties. We reiterate there is no military solution to this political conflict, and strongly supports calls by IGAD for all factions to immediately stop the fighting. A unilateral ceasefire by either side would show the world a serious commitment to peace, to addressing the humanitarian crisis, and to advancing the interests of the people of South Sudan.
Distributed by APO on behalf of U.S. Embassy in Juba.
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Source: APO – Africa-Newsroom: latest news releases related to Africa
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Two Central African Republic Militia Commanders:
Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Abdoulaye Hissene (Hissene) and Maxime Mokom (Mokom) pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13667 for engaging in actions that threaten the peace, security, or stability of the Central African Republic (CAR). As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of these individuals within U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.
“The individuals designated today are responsible for prolonging instability in the Central African Republic,” said OFAC Director John E. Smith. “Today’s action underscores our ongoing efforts to target those responsible for fueling violence and human rights abuses in the Central African Republic.”
Abdoulaye Hissene and Maxime Mokom
In September 2015, Hissene and Mokom collaborated as part of a larger alliance between ex-Séléka members and anti-Balaka allies of former CAR President Francois Bozize, who was sanctioned in May of 2014, to encourage violence in Bangui. Their collaboration was part of a failed coup attempt designed to overthrow the CAR Government while then-Transitional President Catherine Samba-Panza was attending the 2015 UN General Assembly. Hissene and Mokom were specifically identified as suspects in the failed coup by the CAR Public Prosecutor’s office.
In addition, Hissene conspired with Mokom to disrupt a constitutional referendum held in December 2015. Mokom’s anti-Balaka forces worked with elements of Hissene’s Popular Front for the Rebirth of the CAR (FPRC) ex-Séléka group to intimidate voters and disrupt polling in the town of Kaga Bandoro during the December 13 vote. Hissene also encouraged retaliatory attacks between different groups. Hissene is specifically accused of orchestrating violence in Bangui’s KM5 district that killed five, wounded 20, and prevented residents from voting in the referendum.
In June 2016, Hissene’s KM5 fighters and Mokom’s anti-Balaka supporters may have planned to disrupt the arrival of CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s flight to Bangui airport, leading the CAR Government to warn publicly of a possible coup attempt.
On August 12, 2016, Hissene and a group of armed men traveling north from Bangui engaged CAR security forces in multiple gunfights. The UN’s peacekeeping mission in the CAR, the UN’s Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), eventually captured some of the men, but Hissene and several others escaped.
For identifying information on the individuals designated today, click here.
Distributed by APO on behalf of U.S. Department of State.
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Source: APO – Africa-Newsroom: latest news releases related to Africa
DSRSG Humanitarian Press Conference:
Venue: Juba Conference room – Tomping
Time: 09:00 – 10:00 am
Distributed by APO on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
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Source: APO – Africa-Newsroom: latest news releases related to Africa
