The US government is continuing to exercise pressure through the application of the Child Soldiers Prevention Act (CSPA) by granting partial waivers to some states in order to end their unlawful recruitment and use of children in conflict. In its 2014 Trafficking in Persons report, the US Department of State listed nine states, namely the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Myanmar, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Chad, this year, does not figure in the list compiled by the US State Department.

Following the determination of President Obama on the CSPA announced today, CAR, the DRC and South Sudan will be entitled only to limited military assistance. This is the second year in a row that DRC is not granted full military assistance due to its failure to end the recruitment and use of children by its military. While last year CAR was denied any form of military assistance under the CSPA, this year it will be able to obtain limited military assistance. South Sudan last year was granted a blanket waiver but in light of the recrudescence of child recruitment and use during the recent conflict, the US will provide only restricted military support.

President Obama decided to waive the application of the CSPA for Rwanda, Somalia and Yemen, despite their record on child recruitment, on grounds of US national interest. Somalia and Yemen have been listed in the Trafficking in Persons report since the adoption of the CSPA in 2008, yet they have consistently benefitted from blanket waivers.

As a result of this year’s presidential determination, the only countries for which the restrictions imposed by the CSPA will fully apply are those whose governments do not have military relations with the US, namely Myanmar, Syria and Sudan.

Child Soldiers International welcomes the decision of President Obama to continue using partial waivers as a way of maintaining leverage in countries where children are still recruited and used in conflict; however consistently granting persistent perpetrators of child recruitment blanket waivers could undermine the credibility and impact of the CSPA. Blanket waivers send the wrong message that child recruitment and use can be sidelined by political considerations. This is in contrast with the position adopted by the US and a significant number of other UN member states in their firm support to the UN campaign ‘Children Not Soldiers’, which aims at ending state child recruitment by 2016.

Background

Chad has also been de-listed from the Annex to the Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict, issued in May 2014.

For general information on how countries, including the US, should refrain from transferring arms or military assistance to states where there is a risk of child recruitment or use, please see:

• Child Soldiers International, Louder than words: an agenda for action to end state use of child soldiers, September 2012, Part IV.

Text of the US Presidential determination on waivers to the CSPA.

For more information contact Child Soldiers International at +44 (0) 20 7367 4110

The U.S. expanded its aerial campaign against Islamic State (IS) militants in late September with strikes in Syria’s north and east. The operation, which targets both IS and fighters linked to al-Qaeda’s central leadership and the affiliated group Jabhat al-Nusra, risks alienating other rebel groups in Syria and strengthening support for IS. The mainstream armed opposition faced another serious blow when most of the senior leadership of the influential group Ahrar as-Sham was killed in an unexplained bomb blast in early September. Meanwhile, IS continued its advance on the ground, including around the predominantly Kurdish city Kobani near the Turkish border causing some 160,000 Kurds to flee. (See our recent report and commentary on the possible fall of greater Aleppo and the impact this could have on the wider Syrian rebellion).

In Iraq, the beheading of captive U.S. journalists and a British aid worker by IS militants drew strong condemnations. U.S. President Obama vowed to dismantle the group’s “network of death” and several countries, including France and the UK, joined the U.S.-led aerial campaign against IS. Adding to the sectarian divides that aided IS’s initial rise, Iran continued to support Shiite militias in central Iraq, while Western and Iranian support for the Kurdish Regional Government provoked additional tensions by bypassing Baghdad. (See our recent commentary on the rise of the Islamic State, alternatively known as ISIL, ISIS or Daesh.)

The Syrian conflict continued to spill over into Lebanon. In September jihadi groups executed three Lebanese soldiers captured the previous month in the eastern city of Arsal, exacerbating ethnic and communal tensions, and sparking attacks on Syrian refugees. Clashes between the Lebanese army and Syrian rebels also continued in the east leaving several soldiers, Sunni militants and Hizbollah members dead.

Weeks of anti-government protests led by Yemen’s Huthis degenerated into several days of fighting in the capital Sanaa in mid-September. Over two hundred were killed as the Huthis clashed with rival forces loyal to General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar and, to a much lesser extent, Sunni Islamist fighters around Iman University. Large parts of the security forces sided with the Huthis who seized key parts of Sanaa, including government buildings, and were allowed to control security in the city. A new peace deal and power sharing agreement signed on 21 September called for the implementation of national dialogue outcomes and the government to be replaced, but the balance of power on the ground has shifted solidly towards the Huthis. Prospects for a Huthi withdrawal from the capital remain uncertain: a new prime minister has yet to be appointed, and since the agreement Huthis have surrounded and entered the homes of political enemies as well as attacking the home of Yemen’s national security chief Ali al-Ahmadi in late September. (See our most recent report on Yemen’s Huthis.)

After months of deadlock, Sudan’s armed and political oppositions signed a statement on principles for a national dialogue process that would include them both. The government, the SPLM-N and Darfur rebels agreed to meet in October – under the auspices of the African Union High Level Implementation Panel – to discuss a possible cessation of hostilities in all conflict areas. The African Union Peace and Security Council welcomed the planned talks.

September 2014 – Trends

• Deteriorated situations Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen
• Improved situations

October 2014 – Watchlist

• Conflict risk alerts Syria
• Conflict resolution opportunities Sudan

AFR/2981

PKO/441

On 29 September 2014, the United Nations-African Union Joint Task Force on Peace and Security held its ninth consultative meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York, on the margins of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly. The United Nations Secretariat and African Union Commission were represented by senior officials from the two organizations.

The Joint Task Force discussed issues of common interest and identified areas of collaboration in a number of countries, including in Libya, South Sudan and the Sahel. The meeting also discussed forthcoming elections in Africa and agreed on how to coordinate United Nations-African Union actions in support of national efforts to ensure that those elections are conducted smoothly, in order to contribute to the consolidation of peace and security. The Joint Task Force also discussed cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union on a lessons learned exercise on transitions from African Union peace operations to United Nations peacekeeping operations in Mali and the Central African Republic.

The meeting expressed its serious concern at the security and humanitarian situation in South Sudan where millions of people have become vulnerable to a possible famine. The Joint Task Force called on the warring parties to extend full cooperation to the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD)-led mediation and meaningfully participate in the talks to conclude an inclusive peace agreement that addresses the root causes of the conflict.

The Joint Task Force declared its full support for the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) and called upon all parties in South Sudan to respect the Mission’s mandate, cooperate with humanitarian support operations and cease all restrictions to their freedom of movement. The Joint Task Force declared that sustainable peace was not possible without determined efforts to ensure accountability, healing and reconciliation and, in that regard, expressed its full support for the work of the African Union Commission of Inquiry for South Sudan, UNMISS and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The Joint Task Force expressed serious concern over continued conflict in Libya and called on the parties to cease fighting and engage in an inclusive dialogue. The meeting noted the need for enhanced coordination among all stakeholders on initiatives to promote peace in Libya. The meeting also called on all actors and the rest of the international community to fully support the facilitation role of the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General, Bernardino León. The meeting was encouraged by the results of the meeting that brought together the parties in Ghadames on 29 September 2014, and urged the parties to build on this positive step to further the peace and reconciliation process. The meeting also welcomed the proposed convening under United Nations and African Union auspices of the inaugural meeting of the International Contact Group on Libya established by the African Union Peace and Security Council on 23 September 2014.

The Joint Task Force expressed its full support for the inter-Malian talks underway in Algiers. Participants urged the Malian parties to pursue the discussions in a spirit of compromise and reconciliation, based on the agreed principles of the respect of the unity and territorial integrity of Mali, as well as the secular nature of the State. The participants noted with satisfaction the steps already taken to include all strands of Malian society in the political process and encouraged continued efforts in that regard, noting that the outcome of the talks can only be sustainable if it has wide support among Malians. The participants strongly condemned the continuing acts of violence and terrorism in northern Mali, including attacks against United Nations peacekeepers. They urged the armed movements represented in Algiers to abide by their commitment to fully cooperate with the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and others in efforts to bring such attacks to an end. The meeting urged countries in the Sahel to undertake reforms promoting good governance in order to create a conducive environment to enable the international community’s support to the region to be more effective. Participants highlighted the need to improve coordination among the various initiatives on the Sahel by ensuring the effective functioning of the Coordination Platform for the Sahel, including by strengthening the capacities of the Technical Secretariat and supporting the Government of Mali in its presidency of the platform.

The Joint Task Force agreed to deepen the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union on electoral issues, particularly in the areas of pre-election needs assessments, information-sharing and analysis and joint/mutual capacity enhancement. In that regard, the meeting noted the recently adopted Security Council resolution 2167 (2014) by which the Council reaffirms its intention to consider further steps to promote closer and more operational cooperation between the United Nations and regional and sub-regional organizations in the fields of early warning, conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding, and of ensuring coherence, synergy and collective effectiveness of their efforts.

The meeting welcomed the adoption of Security Council resolution 2167 (2014), which, inter alia, requested the Secretary-General to initiate, in full and close cooperation with the African Union, a lessons learned exercise on the transitions from African Union peace operations to United Nations peacekeeping operations in Mali and the Central African Republic and to produce specific recommendations that could be used for possible future transitional arrangements by no later than 31 December 2014.

The Joint Task Force expressed its full support for the steps already undertaken by the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the United Nations Office at the African Union, in close consultations with the African Union, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) and MINUSMA, to undertake the proposed exercise. The Joint Task Force stressed the need for the exercise to come up with innovative recommendations that would help guide future transitions from the African Union to the United Nations in the area of peacekeeping, and underlined the timeliness of the exercise, and its anticipated outcome, in the context of the review of United Nations-led missions, requested by the Secretary-General.

Finally, the meeting agreed on the need to intensify collaborative efforts to develop policies and implement strategies in the areas of rule of law and security institutions, including through the African Union Policy Framework on Security Sector Reform, the African Union Disarmament Demobilization and Reintegration Capacity Programme and the Strategic Framework for Mine Action and Explosive Management.

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson’s remarks at the high-level briefing by the African Regional Economic Communities to Member States of the United Nations, in New York today:

First of all, I want to welcome all the high-level representatives of the African Regional Economic Communities present here today. I am honoured to speak to you.

We meet at a turbulent and, at the same time, [a] dynamic time at the United Nations.

This past week has been full of activity — with a strong focus on Africa, ranging from peacekeeping and humanitarian crisis to the serious Ebola epidemic.

I am pleased that today’s gathering will discuss development and the long-term future of the continent in the light of the African Union’s visionary “Agenda 2063”.

Africa has for long and consistently been a top priority for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the entire United Nations System.

We applaud Africa’s remarkable progress. Economic growth is impressive. More African children go to school than ever before. There are great advances on women’s empowerment and gender equality. Participatory governance and institutions are on the rise.

All this has been possible thanks to the leadership and commitment of African Governments, the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities and many other partners. The United Nations is one such partner, not least through the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). We always stand with Africa.

Regional Economic Communities have shown their unwavering resolve to promote interregional trade, as well as social and economic cooperation. You have also demonstrated an increasing capacity to deal with the root causes of conflict in your respective regions.

There are many examples of progress.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) helped to consolidate peace in Mali and the Sahel region. The Economic Community of Central African States is playing a mediating role in the ongoing crisis in Central African Republic.

I also welcome efforts by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to resolve the situation in South Sudan. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is working with the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region to implement the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes Region.

The Secretary-General has convened a number of high-level meetings over the past week relating to Africa. We have seen progress towards some of our common goals. But crises on the continent still threaten lives and undermine development.

The Ebola virus disease presents new and very serious challenges in West Africa.

I commend the efforts of ECOWAS and the African Union in quickly mobilizing resources and awareness to reduce the impact of Ebola. The United Nations has mobilized to a degree rarely seen.

Our Special Envoy and the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) are working hard to stop the outbreak, treat the infected, provide essential services, preserve stability and prevent the spread of the disease.

The affected nations and the international community have a joint responsibility to contain and stop the epidemic urgently. The affected countries have a right to expect concrete and immediate acts of solidarity.

The humanitarian and security situations in the Central African Republic and South Sudan remain dire. Northern Nigeria and Somalia continue to face rising terrorist threats from Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab. The political situation in Libya is growing more complex and dangerous. Lesotho is facing a risky political stalemate. All these situations have potential spillover effects on subregions and the continent.

Let us remember that development is both a cause and consequence of peace.

There has been great social and economic progress across Africa. But, as in the rest of the world, its economies have not kept pace with legitimate demands. Above all, we need more jobs, especially for Africa’s young people. Unemployment is not only an economic challenge. It is also a social, psychological and political problem.

Trade among African countries remains limited, mainly because they do not have adequate railways, roads and other infrastructure. Many African economies also lack sufficient economic diversification, productivity and well-functioning institutions. As a result, even though African countries have impressive growth, Africa is still off track to meeting many of the MDGs (Millennium Development Goals).

We are here today to consider how we can do more to reduce poverty and inequalities, improve food and water security, and enable more African mothers and children to live healthy lives. Women’s empowerment is especially important to advancing progress for all. We can unleash enormous energy and gains across Africa if we end discrimination and violence against women and girls — and invest in their future as leaders in all areas of society.

Agenda 2063 offers a way forward for Africa with key regional objectives. The Regional Economic Communities can make the difference between failure and success. Agenda 2063 has a global dimension that must be harmonized with international development trends, particularly the post-2015 agenda.

I congratulate Africa on the Common African Position on the post-2015 development agenda. As the negotiations continue, we will work to ensure that the continent’s concerns are appropriately reflected in the next global development agenda.

The transformative changes envisaged in Agenda 2063 will need to be forged around stronger regional integration. There is tremendous power and potential in intensified regional and interregional cooperation, not least for landlocked countries.

Stronger integration will require increased competitiveness in African economies. The process should also be underpinned by major investments in human development, science, technology and infrastructure.

All this will to a great deal depend on effective governance, and durable peace and security in all parts of the continent.

This meeting provides an opportunity for you as Regional Economic Communities to tell us how you are contributing to Agenda 2063 and how the United Nations can better support your efforts. I also look forward to hearing from our Special Envoys and Special Representatives on how the United Nations System can enhance its cooperation with the Regional Economic Communities and the Member States.

Working together, we can demonstrate that the international community accepts its shared responsibility for Africa. Working hand in hand with Africa will also benefit the world at large, advancing common global goals for peace, development, human rights and human dignity.

Thank you.

UNMISS “Protection of Civilians” (PoC) Sites

• As of 30 September, the estimated number of civilians seeking safety in ten Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites located on UNMISS bases is 96,706 including 28,010 in Juba (Tomping and UN House), 17,119 in Malakal, 2,722 in Bor, 47,214 in Bentiu, 585 in Wau, 1,025 in Melut, 28 in Nasser and 3 in Rumbek.

HIGHLIGHTS

• On 22 September, the Sudanese Government lifted the suspension of ICRC activities in the country

• Peace agreements have been signed between Beni Hussein and Abbala in North Darfur and the Ma’aliya and Hamar in West Kordofan

• An estimated 34,000 returnees in Central Darfur’s Um Dukhun locality are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to community leaders

• The number of South Sudanese refugees in Sudan has reached 96,600, according to UNHCR

• About 35 per cent of the total number of people affected by heavy rains and floods are in Kassala, River Nile and Sennar states, according to the SRCS

FIGURES

People in need of humanitarian aid in Sudan -6.9 million

Displaced people in Sudan - 2.9 million

IDPs in Darfur in 2013 in 2014 (to date) - 2 million 393,586

GAM caseload - 1.4 million

Refugees in Sudan (UNHCR) - 157,000

South Sudanese refugees in Sudan - since 15 Dec 2013 (UNHCR) - 96,600

FUNDING

986 million requested in 2014 (US$)

47.2 % reported funding

By Stephen Graham

NAIROBI, 2 October 2014 (IRIN) - The failure of peace talks and the end of South Sudan’s wet season could unleash fresh fighting between government forces and rebel factions, propelling millions of people in the world’s youngest nation back towards a man-made famine, analysts and humanitarian workers warn.

Nine months of bad-tempered negotiations have yet to produce a firm ceasefire, let alone a political deal to end a conflict punctuated by atrocities. Skirmishes have continued in areas close to where thousands of civilians are crammed into UN bases. There are fears that both sides have used the seasonal lull to re-arm.

Surging violence would roil plans by the UN and humanitarian partners to use the dry season to patch up roads and other infrastructure and pre-position critical supplies before the meagre returns from the current disrupted harvest run out in early 2015. The rains usually begin to ease by late October.

“It is going to be a combination of a quieter environment for the people of this country, plus the continuation of a large aid operation, that will help people get through the dry season,” Toby Lanzer, the UN humanitarian coordinator in South Sudan, told IRIN. “If either of those two are absent, disaster will occur.”

Background

The conflict erupted in December 2013, when an intensifying power struggle between President Salva Kiir and former vice-president Riek Machar boiled over into fighting within the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) in the capital, Juba.

Violence quickly engulfed much of the north and east of the country, pitting troops loyal to Kiir against rebel units and militias aligned with Machar. Thousands of civilians are believed to have died, many of them targeted for their ethnicity. Kiir is an ethnic Dinka, Machar a Nuer.

According to the UN, the violence has displaced 1.3 million people within the country, including about 100,000 sheltering in often squalid conditions in UN bases. With agriculture disrupted, livelihoods lost and trade patterns wrecked, nearly four million face serious food insecurity. Another 450,000 have fled to neighbouring Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda.

Peace talks

Those countries, as part of the IGAD regional grouping, have tried to broker an agreement between the warring parties. Seeking to address root causes of the conflict, IGAD as well as foreign donors also have pressed the two sides to sign up for far-reaching reforms as well as a power-sharing deal in a transitional government. The mediators have threatened “punitive” action against spoilers.

But the feuding South Sudanese factions appear far from reaching agreement.

Machar last month refused to sign a detailed protocol mapping a way out of the conflict, even though it offered to create the position of prime minister for an opposition nominee. The protocol also included commitments designed to de-centralize power, rein in corruption and foster reconciliation.

The talks have continued but suffered another blow last week, when government spokesman Michael Makuei Lueth demanded the removal of the Ethiopian chief mediator, accusing him of pursuing “regime change” at the behest of the USA, the UK and Norway. He reportedly also demanded that the process relocate to Kenya.

The protagonists have warned of all-out war if the talks founder, fanning concern that while the politicians declare their commitment to making peace, commanders on both sides are preparing new military campaigns.

Peter Biar Ajak, director of the Centre for Strategic Analyses and Research in Juba, said the failure of rebel forces to make any significant gains in recent months may have encouraged the government to pursue a military solution.

In the dry season, government troops can make use of heavy weapons including tanks and armored vehicles that the rebels lack, and the government’s rejection of the Ethiopian mediator might be a delaying tactic, Ajak told IRIN.

“If [the talks] are moved to Kenya, I don’t see the possibility of making substantial progress before the rainy season ends. And maybe this is where the government’s line of thinking is going: ‘If we can drag this out until the rainy season ends, then we can have a military victory,’” Ajak said.

The absence of an agreement has fanned concern that the war could escalate into a crisis pitting Uganda against its regional rival Sudan.

Uganda sent troops to prop up Kiir’s government at the outset of the trouble, and there has been speculation that the rebels could receive support from Khartoum. Sudan accuses Uganda and South Sudan of supporting rebels in its Darfur, North Kordofan and Blue Nile regions

Ajak said a breakdown of the IGAD talks combined with a government offensive would also make it harder for the Ethiopian government to resist pressure from the Nuer-dominated authorities in its Gambella region, which borders South Sudan, to support the rebels.

“If it becomes an issue of war, Machar will do anything, whatever possible, to make sure he doesn’t lose,” Ajak said.

Why no deal?

Analysts point to South Sudan’s brutal history as well as a lack of sustained diplomatic pressure to explain the readiness of its political elite to use violence in pursuit of power and wealth, with little apparent regard for the suffering of ordinary civilians.

Accounts of the country’s independence from Sudan in 2011 tend to focus on the decades-long struggle of the South Sudanese against Khartoum, obscuring the fact that much of the bloodletting in the south had been between rival armed factions.

While Kiir was able to re-incorporate most of those factions into the SPLA ahead of independence, the current crisis has seen the re-emergence of splits - and violent tactics - all too familiar to the South Sudanese.

“It is going to be a combination of a quieter environment for the people of this country, plus the continuation of a large aid operation, that will help people get through the dry season. If either of those two are absent, disaster will occur.” – Toby Lanzer, Humanitarian Coordinator. Machar, for example, is remembered for an infamous 1991 attack on the town of Bor, in which his supporters massacred an estimated 20,000 people after he created a splinter group within the SPLA. This time, Bor was again among the first targets of opposition wrath, in apparent revenge for the killing of Nuer civilians in Juba.

Academics describe governance in South Sudan as a “kleptocratic” system, where power is maintained through patronage paid for by raiding the state coffers and turning a blind eye to embezzlement. Despite billions of dollars in revenue from South Sudan’s oil bonanza, the system has broken down, at least temporarily.

“Kiir’s strategy has always been to just keep on paying off people in order to stay in power but that hasn’t been a sustainable solution,” said Jonathan Fisher, a lecturer in international development at Birmingham University in the UK. “So now what we’re seeing is a renegotiation of the settlement.”

“Both are trying to capture territory and resources in order to strengthen their positions in terms of that bargaining process,” Fisher told IRIN.

Ajak said South Sudanese culture as well as the fierce rivalry between Machar and Kiir also helped explain the potential for bloodshed.

“For them it has become about power and also about disrespect. They feel like the other side has disrespected them. So it becomes a personal issue. And the problem for us in South Sudan is, when you personalize things like that, people would prefer to go to the extreme end than to even negotiate and compromise,” Ajak said.

Sanctions

The US and European Union have imposed sanctions on a handful of commanders from both sides.

Donald Booth, US special envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, said last week that Washington intends “to give those who need to negotiate the thought that the US is serious, that there are consequences if this continues”.

But there are doubts that the international community, including regional powers jockeying for political and economic influence, will bring significant pressure to bear.

IGAD has yet to follow through with its own threat of sanctions, even after the warring sides failed to meet a series of deadlines. IGAD has most recently urged the parties to reach an agreement by mid-October.

The Enough Project, a US-based group campaigning against genocide, said that would be the moment to “seize the homes, bank accounts and shell companies of anyone undermining the peace process or committing gross human rights abuses.”

“Targeted, biting sanctions and other focused pressures are the best hope for altering the calculations of the conflicting parties,” Enough Project Director John Prendergast said in a report released in September.

Tariq Riebl, director of relief agency Oxfam in South Sudan, said the crisis in South Sudan risked being overshadowed by those in Syria, Iraq and Ukraine as well as the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, with knock-on effects for both diplomatic attention and funding.

“Looking at the vast ramifications, one would have hoped there would be a huge sense of urgency” among all those involved in the search for peace, Riebl told IRIN. “There are millions of people affected by this already. The recent news has been good in terms of food security, but if conflict resumes, we all need to be very, very clear that 2015 will be a horrific year for South Sudan.”

Arms

Meanwhile, rights groups are warning that arms worth millions of dollars have flooded into the country since the start of the hostilities.

Media reports, citing shipping documents, said a consignment of more than 1,000 tons of small arms and light weapons bound for South Sudan from China was unloaded in the Kenyan port of Mombasa in June. Amnesty International said there were reports that both sides in South Sudan were using ammunition manufactured in China as recently as 2013.

A group of over 20 South Sudanese and international development and rights organizations have called on IGAD and the UN to impose an arms embargo - so far in vain.

“As long as these weapons are imported into South Sudan, they are likely to be used to commit further atrocities,” the group said in its appeal.

A senior security official working for an international organization in Juba said it was reasonable to assume that, even while the politicians discussed peace in Ethiopia, commanders on both sides were preparing for a new military campaign.

The official, who asked for anonymity because he is not authorized to speak publicly, said there were signs that both sides were recruiting youth, reinforcing their positions and re-arming in case of a return to hostilities.

Flashpoints include Bentiu, the capital of the key oil-producing state of Unity, where troops from both sides are positioned close to the town. Tension in Bentiu was further heightened by the shooting down of a UN helicopter on 28 August, killing two crew members and threatening supply lines to 40,000 civilians living in squalid conditions at the UN base there.

Another hotspot is Nasir, a former Machar stronghold in Upper Nile State captured by government forces in May. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, government forces in Nasir “withstand almost daily shelling and small arms fire from across the Sobat [river] and the surrounding villages, sometimes sustaining heavy losses.”

Last week, both sides claimed gains in fresh fighting in other parts of Upper Nile, and that they had inflicted scores of casualties on opposing troops.

“As it stands militarily, the only thing currently preventing a return to the widespread violence witnessed in the early months of the war is the rainy season,” the EIU wrote in a September assessment.

Famine risk

The humanitarian consequences of turning back to arms could be grave.

In the initial spasm of violence, many farmers across the north and east lost their cattle and were unable to plant their fields, raising fears that millions of civilians could fall victim to famine and disease. In response, relief agencies have marshalled a massive humanitarian operation that has helped avert mass starvation.

However, experts have consistently indicated that the risk of famine will be most acute in the first half of 2015, when the meagre harvest from the disrupted planting season runs out.

A September report by government agencies and food security experts said that, while good conditions during the current growing season had eased food insecurity since May, the situation is much worse than in a typical year. They forecast that some 1.5 million people will face “crisis” or “emergency” levels of food insecurity through December, including one-third of the population of the worst-affected states of Upper Nile, Jonglei and Unity. “Crisis” and “emergency” represent levels three and four on the widely-used Integrated Food Security Phase Categorization (IPC) scale. Level five is “famine”.

“These populations have made it through conflict, displacement, and a harsh lean season in 2014 by relying on coping mechanisms, including traditional kinship sharing and distress asset depletion. As a result, their resilience into 2015 is expected to be very weak, particularly if new shocks occur,” the experts said in the IPC report.

Lanzer, the UN humanitarian coordinator, said that in some counties farmers had begun gathering in crops prematurely in order to meet the urgent needs of their families, pushing down overall yields.

The Famine Early Warning System Networks, a monitoring organization funded by the US government, predicted that flooding in Duk County, part of the violence-afflicted Jonglei State, would damage “already limited crop areas. Field reports suggest that harvests may only last for two months,” it said in a 15 September report.

Lanzer said relief organizations intended to use the dry season to repair and upgrade crucial roads, airstrips and bridges so that they can pre-position supplies and ensure access to remote corners of the worst-affected areas once the rains resume next year.

While Lanzer described donor support for South Sudan as “generous,” he said the massive campaign of airdrops employed this year is “simply not sustainable with the amounts of money that are available in the international aid system...

“It could be a very difficult situation for us if indeed there is a further outbreak of violence in the dry season and we are unable to reach populations in need on the one hand, and unable to pre-position stocks for the rainy season,” Lanzer said. Under those circumstances, “it would be verging on the impossible to prevent a famine.”

UN bases

With no resolution to the conflict in sight, the UN has also had to accept that around 100,000 civilians crammed into its peacekeeping bases are unlikely to return home in the near future.

Following heavy rains, living conditions in some of the camps have become desperate. Families have been living in knee-deep mud contaminated with human waste from collapsed latrines. Some camps have faced shortages of clean water, and there is concern about rising violence in and around the camps, especially against women.

Lanzer said the UN would use the dry season to upgrade the most inhospitable camps, in the northern towns of Bentiu and Malakal. Dutch engineers were providing advice on improving drainage in Bentiu, he said.

“It’s not that we expect more people to come, although that could happen,” Lanzer said. “It is simply that we’ll need to be better able to deal with the rainy season if people have to stay.”

He said the UN would neither force nor encourage people to return home against their will. But he said the world body would help people “make contact with other communities and with members of the local authorities” in order to encourage reconciliation and trust-building.

“These can all be small steps, small seeds for peace, but it’s got to happen. We can’t have a situation where people are on a UN base or in an IDP camp ad infinitum. That is not going to take South Sudan anywhere and it is certainly not going to be good for the families that have been affected.”

sg/cb

I. Introduction

1. Faisant suite à sa résolution 2147 (2014), par laquelle le Conseil de sécurité me priait de lui faire rapport sur le respect des engagements pris dans l’Accord - cadre pour la paix, la sécurité et la coopération pour la République démocratique du Congo et la région1 , le présent rapport rend compte des faits nouveaux survenus depuis mon rapport du 5 mars 2014 (S/2014/153) et des récentes initiatives entreprises avant le 31 août pour ramener la paix et la sécurité dans l’est du pays et la région, ainsi que de l’état d’avancement de la mise en œuvre des objectifs de l’Accord-cadre, notamment les mesures prises par les parties concernées pour mettre en œuvre le plan d’action régional adopté par les chefs d’État à Addis-Abeba le 31 janvier 2014.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Heavy rains and associated flooding affect more than 277,000 people across Sudan

• The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) signs agreement with the Government of Sudan (GoS) to resume operations in Sudan following a nine-month suspension

• The U.S Government (USG) provides more than $287 million in FY 2014 to support humanitarian efforts across Sudan

KEY DEVELOPMENTS

• Heavy rains and resultant flooding since late July have affected more than 277,000 people across Sudan. The GoS, the U.N., non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and international organizations are providing humanitarian assistance to flood-affected populations, reaching at least 150,100 people as of September 9, the U.N. reports.

• Following the signing of a country agreement on August 28 with the GoS Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the lifting of a nine-month suspension on September 21, ICRC is undertaking steps to resume humanitarian operations in Sudan. The suspension of ICRC’s activities has negatively affected many conflict-affected and displaced populations across the country due to gaps in critical relief services.

• In FY 2014, the USG provided more than $287 million in humanitarian aid for internally displaced and other vulnerable populations, including refugees, in Sudan. USG-funded activities include support for agriculture and food security; food assistance; economic recovery and market systems (ERMS); health; logistics; nutrition; protection; and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) assistance.

Setting out the range of situations to be addressed by the Security Council in October, the Permanent Representative of Argentina, whose delegation holds that body’s presidency for the month, this afternoon underlined the importance of making further progress on inclusiveness and transparency of the Council’s work.

Announcing an open debate on that topic planned for 23 October, María Cristina Perceval proposed that Member States assess progress made and gaps that remained in opening up the Council’s work to the full United Nations membership. They should also bring concrete suggestions for improvement, she said.

Other open debates this month would include one on women, peace and security on 28 October, which would focus on the plight of women who, she noted, made up 80 per cent of those living as displaced persons in the world today and suffered a lack of access to basic needs, as well as sexual abuse and forced marriage. Efforts of women to organize themselves to effect change would be included in that discussion. The head of UN-Women would brief. The quarterly open debate on the Middle East was planned for 21 October. No draft resolution on the Palestinian question, however, had been submitted.

Regarding the Council’s transparency, she said that as President she hoped to promote greater inclusiveness by listening to all viewpoints and building consensus in that context. In the 23 October open debate on the topic, she said that progress was particularly needed on the question of due process in listing persons for targeted sanctions. The Chair of the 1267 Committee on Al-Qaida sanctions planned to brief. The possibility would be considered of extending the ombudsman mechanism to all sanctions regimes, to increase transparency and impartiality.

Also at that meeting, the process of referring situations to the International Criminal Court would be discussed, she said, stressing that the Court should not be used to settle political scores but be an impartial body that administered justice. Referrals must be followed up. Fatou Ben Souda, the Court’s Prosecutor, had been asked to brief on the matter.

Concerning the rest of “a very heavy agenda”, she said that meetings on Syria were planned to assess the elimination of chemical weapons in the country as well as the humanitarian situation there, but no meetings on the political aspects of the crisis had yet been scheduled. She also flagged open briefings on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Somalia and South Sudan, as well as briefings in consultations on Western Sahara and Yemen.

Turning to briefings on sanctions regimes, she said that for the first time there would be a formal meeting on the measures concerning Somalia and Côte d’Ivoire. On peacekeeping issues, she noted that the military commanders of three missions would brief on 9 October, with commanders of other operations available to answer questions.

Approval of the Council’s annual report would be considered on 22 October, she said, noting that complaints had consistently been voiced at the late presentation of the report in previous years; this was the first year that it would be ready in time for delegations to consider it ahead of the related General Assembly meeting. The monthly wrap-up session would also take place as an open meeting.

A series of questions — sparked by comments made by the Argentine President at the 24 September Council Summit — was asked about assistance to rebels in Syria, which, correspondents said, were later named terrorists. She said that more clarity was needed in fighting terrorism. Prudence was needed before action was taken to assist armed groups. "Sometimes people change, but we're not talking about change here," she added.

On the veto, she called interesting the French initiative to refrain from use of that tool in cases of crimes against humanity, but she commented that it was not immediately clear what situations that covered. On perceived inequities concerning International Criminal Court referrals, she said that, in her personal opinion, the fight against impunity was a long process, and the way to strengthen justice was not to undo progress that had been made.

Further discussion of the Ebola epidemic was being considered by the Council because of the presence of peacekeepers in the affected region and related reasons, she said, adding however that the response to the disease was under the competency of other United Nations bodies. Similarly, repression of journalists came under the area of expertise of the Human Rights Council.

However, she stressed many issues affected international peace and security. Peace, she said, was achieved through equality and tolerance, respect for human rights, development and social inclusion. "Anything else is not peace but mere mitigation of violence," she stated.

2 October 2014 – The United Nations confirmed today that an incident involving troops from the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and internally displaced persons seeking refuge at a UN camp in South Sudan has “returned to normal.”

According to information provided by the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), around a dozen armed soldiers belonging to the SPLA advanced yesterday on the perimeter of the Bentiu camp in Unity state where over 47,000 people uprooted by the recent violence in the country are said to be sheltering.

“The soldiers were asked not to enter the camp and did not get inside, but their presence resulted in panic among those sheltering at the site,” UN Spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, told reporters in New York.

“No weapons were fired and the situation returned to normal several hours later,” he added.

Mr. Dujarric noted that UNMISS reminded all parties of the “inviolability of UN premises” and said the mission had reaffirmed its “resolve to defend its protection of civilian sites and personnel.”

South Sudan has experienced several bouts of violence over the past few months, including an incident in which the UN base in Bentiu came under fire resulting in the wounding of one child. Meanwhile, a prior attack caused hundreds of people to seek shelter at the nearest airport. Approximately 340 civilians took shelter with UNMISS troops, and then were escorted to safety.

Political in-fighting between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, Riek Machar, started in mid-December 2013 and subsequently turned into a full-fledged conflict that has sent nearly 100,000 civilians fleeing to UNMISS bases around the country. The crisis has uprooted some 1.5 million people and placed more than 7 million at risk of hunger and disease.

Highlights

• During this reporting period, IOM has evacuated a total of 205 refugees who have entered from South Sudan to Ethiopia (194 ‐ Burbiey entry point in Gambella Region and 11 ‐ Abrahamu in Benishangul‐Gumuz Region)

• Only 1,181 have been moved in September. So far, 83 refugees were moved from Burbiey to Matar during this reporting period The daily influx from Burbiey fluctuates from 7‐20 with 10‐50 for Akobo.

• 62,809 refugees (Leitchour 47,122, Matar 7,581, Nip Nip 2,854, Pamdong 2,452 and Pagak 2,800) need to be relocated to new camps.

• Total number of refugees evacuated by IOM: 172,292 from Gambella and 2,581 from Benishangul‐Gumuz.

General Overview

Since the conflict broke out in December 2013, the total number of South Sudanese refugees who crossed borders to neighbouring countries, has surpassed 455,682 individuals. Ethiopia has continued to receive the highest number of refugees with a total of 189,343 individuals crossing its border according to UNHCR.

IOM has assisted 172,292 refugees in Gambella and 2,581 in Benishangul‐Gumuz since the conflict broke out. During this reporting period, IOM has evacuated a total of 205 refugees who have entered from South Sudan to Ethiopia (194 - Burbiey entry point in Gambella Region and 11 ‐ Abrahamu in Benishangul‐Gumuz Region). The number of arrival into the Gambella Region has dropped due to rain and rising water level of the Baro River in various locations in the Region. Over all, the number of South Sudanese refugees that IOM has evacuated in September has declined due to the rain, camp flooding, stalled relocations to Okugu camp in Dima and an ongoing search for alternative camp locations.

From the entry points, only 1,181 have been moved in September. So far, 194 refugees were moved from Burbiey to Matar during this reporting period. The daily influx from Burbiey fluctuates from 7‐20 with 10‐50 for Akobo.

It is difficult to identify the number of new arrivals from Pagak as well asthe current refugees since there is no registration going on. However, WHO has opened up Ebola centre at the entry point .
IOM and partners have been advised to maintain a strong presence in Dima, Leitchour, Matar and Nip Nip for continuous emergency service delivery. Permanent investment in Leitchour has however, been discouraged.

Currently only 54 kms of the road from Gambella to Leitchuor is accessible with the remaining part of the road completely under water, including the surrounding grassland. This has left no possibility of pumping out the water from the road and no possibility of opening bypass roads.

Since the road to Leichour is still impassable, IOM has faced challenges while transporting its staff, refugees, and fuel to Matar. So far, all partners depend on the helicopter for all movements to and from Matar/ Leichour. This is however not possible with fuel and other essential items. This has forced IOM to use rental vehicles to transport refugees from Burbiey to Matar since there are no accessible roads for buses .

Since mid September, there have been 62,809 refugees which need to be re‐relocated from camps and transit centres. From the total number of refugees awaiting relocation to new camps, 47,122 are in Leitchour, 7,581 in Matar, 2,854 in Nip Nip, 2,452 in Pamdong and 2,800 in Pagak.

It was jointly communicated by ARRA/UNHCR that previously relocated refugees to the above camps and all new arrivals from the three entry points of Burbiey, Akobo and Pagak need to be relocated to alternative camps, of which Okugu is one of the main options.

IOM has devised an action plan to start the relocation to Okugu camp and has also constructed a transit station at Geder around Macha. But as relocation to Okugu has not started, IOM is on standby.

Despite the option to relocate the refugees to Okugu, refugees are still showing concerns about relocation to Okugu fearing close proximity to clashing tribes. Another challenge is Okugu can only absorb 29,000 refugees in addition to the 6,000 already there. Therefore, the search for a new site with higher ground in the Gambella Region is top on the agenda.

Currently relocation is only carried out from Akobo to Matar and all other movements are restricted.

IOM has also started the construction of shelters to assist 39,000 refugees (7,800 households) in Kule refugee camp in Gambella to enhance protection from harsh weather conditions and environment. To date, IOM has constructed 65 shelters. However, due to heavy rain around and in the camp, the road access has been a challenge since Monday 8th September in terms of moving construction materials.

IOM is also facilitating refugee movement from Assosa in the Regional State of Benishangul‐Gumuz. As of 30th September, 2,581 refugees have been relocated from different entry points in the Region.

During this reporting period, there has been refugee relocation from Abrahamu entry point to different camps. IOM is also providing pre‐departure medical screening to identify refugees who may need medical attention and/or referral on arrival at the camp.

On request by UNHCR, IOM is also facilitating camp-to-camp transportation for refugees who may want to relocate to a different camp for one reason or another.

October 1, 2014 (KAMPALA) – South Sudanese Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) taking refuge in the United Nations camps across the country have repeated calls on the international community to exert pressure on both warring parties in order to reach a peace agreement soon.

A leader of the IDPs Youth Forum who identified himself as Gattiek told Sudan Tribune on Wednesday he welcomed the resumption of the sixth round of the peace talks in Ethiopia but added there is need for expeditious process to end the bloodletting between president Salva Kiir’s government and the rebel faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM-in-Opposition) led by former vice-president Riek Machar.

“We would like to urge international community and IGAD member states to engage both sides for urgent peace in South Sudan,” Gattiek said.

He said the recent agreement in principle on formation of federal system of governance in South Sudan is a right decision, adding this will promote nation building and strong democratic state.

The youth representative called on the international community to play an effective role by putting pressure on the two warring parties to speedily address to root causes of the mid-December crisis that will lead to reconciliation and lasting peace in the country.

The group leader also cited tribalism as a main obstacle to peace, adding that many people are in UN camps due to fear of ethnic targeting which has been common practice in fuelling the conflict.

“Most of IDPs live under the protection of UN peace keeping mission due to ongoing ethnic targeting in Juba. Our friends, relatives and family members were murdered by security personnel from government,” he said, questioning the credibility of the government as a protector of individual rights.

The UN camps in Jebel and Tongping in the capital Juba house 20,000 people in the protection facilities. However, Gattiek said life in the UN camps is horrible due to overcrowding.

Many people in Unity, Upper Nile, Jonglei and Central Equatoria states have been forced to seek protection at the UN compounds after the violence hit South Sudan in December last year, pitting president Kiir’s Dinka tribe and their allies against Machar’s Nuer ethnic group.

Most of IDPs residential areas have been allegedly occupied by security officials who were part of incitement of the violence, an allegation Sudan Tribune has not independently verified.

The IDPs said they supported an investigation into war crimes committed by both parties, arguing this would bring trust to South Sudanese people once perpetrators are held accountable.

The groups in particular called on president Kiir to step down, accusing him of being allegedly responsible for turning the country into “mess and bloodshed.”

The peace talks between the government and the SPLM-in-Opposition have been mediated for the last nine months by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) with little progress seen this week when the two sides agreed on the principle of installing a federal system of government per the demand by the rebels.

The parties also negotiate on dividing executive powers between the president and a would-be rebels prime minister nominee who will also run for presidential elections.

Tens of thousands have died and over 1.5 million others displaced since the violence erupted in the capital nine months ago.

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September 29, 2014 (WAU) – A joint intitiative has been launched by the state assemblies in the Greater Bahr el Ghazal region as part of effort to bring peace to volatile tribal tensions in South Sudan’s Lakes state.

The move, which was instiaged by MPs from the Greater Bahr el Ghazal region after a three-day meeting in Western Bahr el Ghazal capital Wau, has been welcomed by the state’s acting governor, Zackaria Joseph Garang.

Garang pledged his government’s support for the initiative.

“We, as the government of Western Bahr el Ghazal state are very happy for your step and will support it, as your move is targeting peace in Lakes state,” he said, adding that any moves to step up peace efforts and achieve unity were a positive step.

While presenting the so-called Greater Bahr el Ghazal peace initiative for Lakes state, Warrap MP Deng Makuac Kur call on the governors of Warrap, Western Bahr el Ghazal and Northern Bahr el Ghazal to take collective action to calm tribal tensions and curb ongoing road attacks and revenge killings in Lakes state.

“We cannot feel freely if our people in Lakes state are continuing killing themselves, including attacking people on the roads in a senseless meaning. We have to do what is possible to end such behaviours,” he said.

They are calling for the formation of a regional team to visit Lakes state, with the aim of engaging with the local youth, civil society organisations, religious leaders, traditional chiefs, government officials and other concerned bodies to come up with a lasting solution to the crisis.

“We need the three state governors to right away send an organised force to Lakes state to quell down the situation and hopefully protect the entire population there,” he said.

“We want to stop [the] senseless killing in Lakes state and revenge killing that is happening,” he added.

Northern Bahr el Ghazal state MP Garang Mawein Mawein said that the situation in Lakes state requires regional cooperation.

“Late Lakes state youth tell [the] people of Greater Bahr el Ghazal the reason of killing themselves; if it is a matter of cow, let them tell us so that the three states should send all their animals to Lakes state,” he said.

“If it is an issue of girls, we can also do the same to them by sending them girls from [the] three states, so that [the] senseless killing in Lakes state comes to an end,” he added.

Mawein said tribal tensions, cattle raids and revenges attacks inLakes state had been ongoing since the signing of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which paved the way for the South’s secession from the north, saying the situation continued to threaten the security of the entire region.

Highway killings and revenge attacks have been on the rise since last month, with the local population increasingly disillusioned with military caretaker governor Matur Chuut Dhuol.

However, South Sudanese president Salva Kiir has so far overlooked calls for Dhuol’s removal.

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Gives Sweeping Powers to Abusive Security Forces

(Nairobi, October 3, 2014) – South Sudan’s lawmakers should overhaul draft legislation that would establish and regulate the powers of the National Security Service (NSS) to ensure that it conforms with international human rights standards, Human Rights Watch said today. The draft law is pending before parliament and expected to be put to a vote on October 7, 2014.

“As is, the National Security Service bill would sanction the national security service’s abusive and unlawful detentions and interrogations,” said Daniel Bekele, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “South Sudan should insist on a higher standard instead of echoing Sudan’s draconian national security law.”

The bill should be revised to bring it in line with international human rights standards, and South Sudan’s Bill of Rights, Human Rights Watch said.

The security service has operated without a legal basis since South Sudan’s independence. Human Rights Watch has documented serious security service violations such as arbitrary detentions of people for their perceived political views, and of journalists. Following the outbreak of new conflict in South Sudan in December 2013, the security service increased censorship and detained several journalists, creating an atmosphere of fear for journalists and independent groups.

Earlier in 2014, the security service ordered the newspaper Almajhar Alsayasy, to cease publication. Authorities have confiscated issues of another weekly newspaper, Juba Monitor, eight times in the past seven months. In June, security officials seized an entire run of the Citizen, another weekly newspaper. In August, the security service suspended the Catholic FM Radio Bahkita for several weeks, locking the office, arresting three staff members, and detaining one for three days over a report about the army’s death toll in a battle.

The Justice Ministry drafted the bill and introduced it in the National Legislative Assembly in May. The bill gives the National Security Service officers the same powers of arrest and detention as the police, but does not specify where people it detains are to be held. It also does not explicitly guarantee detainees basic due process rights, such as the right to counsel. The bill also grants the security officers wide powers of surveillance and the authority to search and seize property without clear judicial oversight, and shields them from any criminal liability.

South Sudan’s transitional constitution, which contains due process guarantees, envisages a National Security Service with a mandate that includes “information gathering, analysis and advice to the relevant authorities.” Those provisions are the same as were in Sudan’s Interim National Constitution, passed after the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) continues to enjoy broad powers of arrest, detention, search, and seizure that do not comply with international human rights standards. Sudanese and international human rights groups have long called for the reform of Sudan’s law.

The conflict that began in South Sudan in December 2013 has been characterized by unlawful attacks on civilians – often targeted and killed because of their ethnicity – and civilian property. The violence has killed thousands of people, largely destroyed key towns, and forced an estimated 1.5 million people to flee their homes, often to places where they face severe hunger.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan and human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have documented abuses that constitute war crimes by both government and opposition forces as well as potential crimes against humanity.

“South Sudan’s security service has been operating for years without a legal mandate,” Bekele said. “There needs to be a legal basis for security service actions, but it should be an agency that will protect rights, not one that creates the kind of security body South Sudanese fought to free themselves from.”

HIGHLIGHTS

The first baby is born in the IOM Bentiu maternity clinic

CCCM partners begin the expansion of the Malakal PoC

Since conflict broke out in December 2013, 1.7 million have fled their homes. Many have crossed into neighboring countries (estimated 452,000 people have fled to neighboring countries of Kenya ,
Uganda, Ethiopia and Sudan individuals). 1.4 million individuals remain internally displaced and most are seeking shelter in remote rural areas across the country. Displacement patterns remain fluid, driven by violence, access to emergency assistance and floods. There are currently 96,650 internally displaced persons (IDPs) sheltering in nine UN bases across South Sudan. Approximately 186,999 people displaced early during the conflict have since returned to their homes having in many cases lost all of their belongings.

The general security situation for the reporting period has been tenuous and unpredictable with reports of gunfire and conflict taking place in Upper Nile and Unity States. Cattle raiding and general insecurity has been reported throughout the country.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) released an update on 23 September and FAO projects that 1.5 million people will remain severely food insecure until the end of 2014.,

Heavy rains throughout the country continue to pose significant challenges for the transport of humanitarian staff and cargo with the conditions of roads worsening and runway conditions remaining poor.

03/10/2014

In late August, teams of FAO South Sudan staff members returned to their offices in FAO’s Juba headquarters after spending challenging weeks in the field conducting the 13th round of the Food Security Monitoring System (FSMS) survey.

The FSMS report provides fundamental updates on the food security and livelihood situation in South Sudan and contributes to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis.

The FSMS provides a fresh set of data collected across the country. FAO and partners – including UNICEF, WFP, FEWS NET, the Government of South Sudan, and NGOs – deployed teams to all ten states to examine a variety of indicators on areas such as livelihoods, access to and availability of food, and food consumption. This included travelling to extremely hard-to-reach areas that had not been accessed since the beginning of the crisis. Teams often walked for hours to reach remote households, with one team even chartering a helicopter to visit isolated communities.

Francis Muana, FAO Area Food Security and Livelihood Cluster Coordinator took part in three different missions for the FSMS. He highlighted, “There are areas that are really difficult to move in at this current time. For some of our assessments we had to walk for miles and miles to reach every household, we moved through flooded waters to see households that hadn’t been reached before. It was very important to collect this information.” The 13th FSMS assessment was unique because for the first time it added nutrition indicators to the assessments. Nutrition indicators are part of the outcome indicators required for IPC analysis, but this was previously constrained by insufficient nutrition data. Nutrition information is a key element for the IPC classification of Phase 4 (emergency) and 5 (famine) and for the first time the FSMS survey incorporated weight and height measurements. The nutrition module of the questionnaire was developed by FAO, WFP, UNICEF, the Ministry of Health and the Nutrition Cluster and incorporated as an important tool for the FSMS report.

FAO and partners continue working collectively to strengthen food security information systems in South Sudan. The FSMS and IPC are tools that support the institutionalization of a robust food security information system at the national and state levels, enabling the Government to implement standardized methodologies for food security data collection, analysis, and transmission to stakeholders. The latest IPC comprehensive analysis was released on 23 September 2014.

October 2, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA/JUBA) – South Sudanese military and rebels on Thursday accused each other of breaking a fragile ceasefire agreement and portraying the other as the aggressor.

In Juba, the spokesperson of the government army, Col. Phillip Aguer accused the rebel SPLM-in-opposition of hostile activities in various places in the Upper Nile state region, including shelling and carrying out attacks on their positions.

“They (rebel forces) are in it again. They have been shelling positions of our forces in Unity states, in Renk, in Doleib hills and in positions of our forces around Ayod," Aguer told reporters on Thursday.

Aguer further said that the troops maintain their positions in all the attacked positions stressing that they have the right to fight in self-defence in the event they are attacked in their positions by the rebels.

On the other hand, the rebel military spokesperson, Brig Lul Ruai Koang, issued a press statement on Thursday accusing government troops of shelling several positions under the control of their fighters in the troubled Unity and Upper Nile states.

“Government troops shelled our defensive positions on 30th September 2014 at Kuer Guina, Thou-Maan-Gor and Wang-Kei military outpost in Guit, Rupkona and Mayom Counties, Unity State,” he said in a statement seen by Sudan Tribune.

He claimed that there have been increased unusual movement of government troops and equipment in and around Bentiu, Renk, Dolieb Hills and Ayod.

Koang further accused the government of preparing for offensives against the rebels despite the ongoing peace talks in the Ethiopian northern town of Bahir Dar.

“All these are clear indications that the loyalists are preparing for major offensive operations across Greater Upper Nile State,” he added.

The rebels’ spokesperson said the shelling came two days after government troops shelled a relief centre at Kamel in Pigi county of Jonglei State.

The warring parties signed a ceasefire in January 2014, a month after the eruption of hostilities and recommitted themselves to stop the fighting and allow humanitarian assistance last May.

US special envoy Donald Both warned this week that the two warring parties could face UN sanctions should they continue to violate the cessation of hostilities agreement and not reach a peace agreement.

"The continuing conflict continues to undermine their interests more than anybody else’s other than the South Sudanese." Booth said.

"They also understand the danger of ungoverned or lightly governed spaces and so they don’t want to see South Sudan go in that direction," he added.

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