UN: South Sudan continues imposing restrictions on UNMISS movement

The Government of South Sudan has continued to impose restrictions on the movement of the UN Mission there (UNMISS) and humanitarian workers, in violation of the Status of Forces Agreement, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous said.

    Ladsous stressed the need for unimpeded movement by the Mission and humanitarian partners in order to address the worsening humanitarian and human rights situation. "These restrictions have severely impacted the Mission's ability to move and protect civilians as well as the UN's ability to deliver badly needed humanitarian assistance," Ladsous said. 

    He urged the Council to send a strong message to both the Government and the opposition on the utmost imperative to grant the Mission and humanitarian partners unimpeded freedom of movement to allow them to implement their respective mandates.

    He said that the preliminary investigation into the violence in the UNMISS civilian protection site in Malakal on 17 and 18 February indicated that at least 25 internally displaced people were killed and more than 140 injured.

Source: QNA