UN reinforcements due in South Sudan in 48 hours

The first reinforcements to the U.N. peacekeeping mission in South Sudan are expected to arrive within two days, the world body's special envoy to the violence-wracked country, Hilde Johnson, said Thursday. The UN Security Council agreed to nearly double the size of the mission known as UNMISS, allowing for up to 12,500 soldiers and 1,300 police. "We are working around the clock to get assets," which will come from other U.N. peacekeeping missions in Africa, notably in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan's Darfur region and Liberia, Johnson said. "We are working on 48 hours delivery of several of the critical assets that we need," she told a press conference. Both manpower and equipment would be sent, Johnson said, without offering further details. Helicopters and a military transport plane are eventually expected to be deployed to South Sudan.