December 24th 2018 (Nyamilepedia) – The Sudanese government on Saturday condemned, in a statement, the last week’s attack by elements of South Sudan army against peace monitors near the country’s capital Juba.
Last week, South Sudan army attacked and detained members of the peace monitoring body, the Cease-fire and Transition Security Arrangements Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (CTSAMVM) forcing a female Ethiopian officer to walk naked.
The incident followed weeks of international condemnation against South Sudanese army following the detention and sexual assault against 150 women near Bentiu for ten days in late November.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it regret the incident which has also been condemned by the regional body, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) which mediated South Sudan’s peace deal.
“The Sudanese government has received, with great regret and concern, the news about the heinous attack on a team of the Cease-fire and Transition Security Arrangements Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (CTSAMVM) in South Sudan during a routine mission near Juba Tuesday,” Sudan’s foreign ministry said in a statement Saturday.
The statement further said the attack is a clear violation of the revitalized peace deal signed in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa in September 2018 and a breach of teh obligation to protect peace monitors.
“……a flagrant violation of the revitalized peace deal and cessation of hostilities agreement as well as the international agreements related to maintaining human rights,” the statement said adding that its is also “a breach of the duty to protect the cease-fire monitoring mechanism, which seeks to help bring peace to South Sudan.”
Under regional and international pressure, South Sudan President, Salva Kiir Mayardiit and opposition leader Dr. Riek Machar Teny signed a peace deal in September in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa to end the war.
The agreement in Addis Ababa followed months of intense negotiations among delegates of the government and opposition who must, by the time, sign a pact or face international or further regional isolation.
The government in late October conducted a peace celebration ceremony in the capital Juba and was attended by regional leaders as well as the SPLM-IO leader Dr. Machar.
