World condems Jonglei peacekeeper deaths
April 11, 2013 (LONDON) – The international community has continued to express condemnation of the death of 12 people in an ambush of a United Nations convoy in South Sudan’s Jonglei state on 9 April.
The attack by a 200 strong group of unidentified armed men in Pibor county, killed five Indian peacekeepers and seven civilians working for the UN Mission in South Sudan. The military have blamed rebels for the attack but this has been denied by David Yauyau the leader of the group.
On Wednesday the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, expressed her immense shock and sorrow over the “criminal and cowardly attack”.
She reiterated the AU’s deep appreciation of the outstanding work of the mission, which was established in July 2011, corresponding with South Sudan’s independence. The attack is the deadliest suffered by the mission, eclipsing the accidental shooting down of a UN helicopter by the South Sudanese army (SPLA) in December last year, which killed the aircraft’s four Russian crew.
In a statement she expressed the AU’s “heartfelt condolences to the families of the peacekeepers, their respective countries, UNMISS and the United Nations Secretariat.”
The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has paid tribute to Lieutenant Colonel Mahipal Singh, Shiv Kumar Pal, Hira Lal, Bharat Singh and Nand Kishore, who he described as “brave soldiers”.
The four Indian soldiers, who were injured in the attack have been transported to Uganda for treatment, according to India’s ministry of external affairs.
Over 7,000 Indian troops are currently serving four different mission around the world.
The United States, a strong backer of South Sudan has also condemned the attack, sympathy to the relatives of those killed and the Indian government. The US and others have called on the Juba government to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and being the perpetrators to justice.
South Sudan’s army and police are deploying extra personnel to the area and have asked for cooperation from the local community in order to arrest those responsible.
A statement from the office of South Sudan’s President said:
“The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is a trusted development partner, providing essential services to the people of South Sudan. We are grateful to the countries that provide peacekeeping troops to the Mission and remain committed to do our part to ensure their safety in South Sudan.
We extend our condolences to the Government of India, UNMISS, and the families of the deceased.”
(ST)