South Sudan’s government on Monday defended a military order calling for the closure of a United Nations peacekeeping base in Akobo, saying the move followed earlier coordination with the mission.
The South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) last Friday issued an order directing civilians, humanitarian organizations and the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to vacate Akobo within 72 hours. The military also asked the U.N. mission to close its temporary base and leave the area, citing plans to launch a new phase of operations against the opposition SPLA-IO.
Information Minister Ateny Wek Ateny said the directive by the army was not intended as a threat to UNMISS but was a follow-up to previous communication between the government and the U.N. peacekeeping mission.
Ateny, who also serves as government spokesperson, spoke to reporters after a meeting of the government’s governance cluster in Juba that reviewed a report from the country’s military leadership on the situation in Akobo.
The meeting was chaired by Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng de Mabior and attended by several ministers, including Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Paul Nang Majok, Justice Minister Michael Makuei and Humanitarian Affairs Minister Albino Atak.
Ateny said the SSPDF statement issued Friday was linked to earlier correspondence with UNMISS regarding the closure of the temporary base in Akobo, Jonglei State.
“The writing from the SSPDF was a follow-up of those correspondences,” Ateny said, adding that the communication was meant to remind the mission of what he described as a prior understanding that the U.N. would eventually withdraw from Akobo.
He said Akobo had already been identified by the U.N. as one of the locations where UNMISS bases would close as part of a broader reconfiguration of its presence in the country.
According to Ateny, the measure was intended to ensure civilians are not caught in crossfire during military operations in the area.
“The SSPDF is determined to ensure that civilians within areas of operation are not caught in crossfire,” he said, adding that the protection of civilians remains the army’s responsibility.
Ateny also said the governance cluster received a briefing from the humanitarian affairs ministry on the potential humanitarian consequences of the situation in Akobo.
Diplomatic Pressure
The military’s earlier order directing civilians and aid groups to leave the area within 72 hours has raised concern among humanitarian organizations about the safety of residents and displaced people in the town. Rights groups, civil society organizations and members of the international community have also expressed alarm.
On Monday, top diplomats from the Troika countries — the United States, the United Kingdom and Norway — urged President Salva Kiir to reverse the order requiring civilians and aid organizations to leave Akobo County ahead of a planned offensive.
In a joint letter addressed to Kiir, the diplomats expressed “deep concern” over a March 6 directive issued by the chief of defence forces of the SSPDF, which gave UNMISS, humanitarian agencies and civilians 72 hours to vacate the area.
The envoys warned that a military operation under such conditions could lead to widespread deaths, displacement and suffering in a region that has become a refuge for people fleeing violence elsewhere.
Akobo County is home to an estimated 245,000 people, including thousands displaced from other parts of Jonglei state. The diplomats said the presence of UNMISS there is crucial to fulfilling its United Nations Security Council mandate to protect civilians.
The Troika also said the SSPDF order appeared to contradict recent commitments by the South Sudanese government. They noted that only weeks earlier Kiir had assured the U.N.’s emergency relief coordinator that authorities would allow “unhindered and unfettered humanitarian access.”
Meanwhile, civilians in Akobo have begun fleeing across the border into Ethiopia after the 72-hour ultimatum expired Monday, according to local officials.
John Wiyual Lul, the SPLM-IO-appointed commissioner of Akobo County, told Radio Tamazuj that many residents had crossed into neighboring Ethiopia, fearing a possible offensive by government forces.
“Citizens are fleeing to Ethiopia because of the order issued by the SSPDF for civilians to leave Akobo town,” he said. “Most of the residents have now vacated the area.”
Lul said humanitarian organizations assisting displaced people and residents had already withdrawn to Ethiopia.
However, he said peacekeepers from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan were still present at their temporary base in Akobo despite the army’s order for the mission to close the facility and leave.