\n
<\/p>\n
UNMISS expressed grave concern following\u00a0reports that a senior military leader is urging troops to inflict\u00a0discriminate violence\u00a0against civilians, with more than 180,000 people fleeing their homes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cInflammatory rhetoric calling for violence against civilians, including the most vulnerable, is utterly abhorrent and must stop now<\/strong>,\u201d Graham Maitland, Officer in Charge,\u00a0said\u00a0on Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n South Sudan \u2013 the world\u2019s youngest country \u2013 gained independence in July 2011 but soon slid into\u00a0civil\u00a0war\u00a0with fighting between forces loyal to either President Salva Kiir or the main opposition leader, First Vice President Riek Machar.\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite\u00a0a 2018\u00a0peace agreement\u00a0and the establishment of a transitional unity government, clashes and tensions persist.\u00a0<\/p>\n UNMISS said communities in\u00a0Jonglei\u00a0and other locations are suffering immense harm from the escalating conflict, including direct military confrontations between forces.\u00a0<\/p>\n Although\u00a0South Sudan\u2019s leaders continue to\u00a0underline\u00a0their commitment to peace, hostilities and violations of the ceasefire continue unabated.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0Mission\u00a0urged\u00a0leaders to put the interests of the\u00a0people first by stopping\u00a0the fighting\u00a0and upholding their commitments under the peace agreement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis includes\u00a0returning to consensus-based decision-making, adhering to power-sharing arrangements<\/strong>, and agreeing on a path to peacefully end the transitional period through inclusive dialogue,\u201d\u00a0said\u00a0Mr. Maitland.\u00a0<\/p>\n The UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan\u00a0expressed\u00a0grave alarm\u00a0over the situation\u00a0in Jonglei,\u00a0saying\u00a0the inflammatory rhetoric by senior military figures and reports of force\u00a0mobilisation\u00a0\u201csignificantly heighten the risk of mass violence against civilians\u00a0<\/strong>and further erode the peace agreement.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Members noted that under international law, military and civilian leaders who incite crimes or who exercise effective control over forces may be held criminally responsible.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Furthermore, those who\u00a0fail to\u00a0prevent or punish crimes they knew about\u00a0\u2013\u00a0or\u00a0should have known were being committed\u00a0\u2013\u00a0are\u00a0equally criminally liable.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cLanguage that calls for the killing of those who are\u202fhors de combat<\/em>\u202f(no longer\u00a0participating\u00a0in hostilities) and civilians, including the elderly \u2013 with assertions that \u2018no one should be spared\u2019 \u2013 is\u00a0not only shocking,\u00a0it is\u00a0profoundly dangerous<\/strong>,\u201d said\u202fYasmin Sooka<\/strong>, Chair of the Commission.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn South Sudan\u2019s past, such rhetoric has preceded mass atrocities. When such language is issued or tolerated by those in positions of command, it signals permission to commit violence and removes any expectation of restraint.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0current escalation is not an isolated incident, but part of a wider political breakdown, the Commission said.\u00a0This is being\u00a0driven by sustained violations of the peace\u00a0deal\u00a0and the erosion of command discipline in an already volatile and ethnically fractured environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen senior figures issue reckless or violent rhetoric, or fail to counter it decisively, they lower the threshold for abuses and send a signal that restraint no longer applies,\u201d Commissioner Barney Afako said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe\u00a0mobilisation\u00a0of forces in this context, coupled with\u00a0ethnicised\u00a0messaging, risks triggering a spiral of retaliatory violence that could rapidly escalate beyond control.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The Commission\u00a0called\u00a0for all parties to\u00a0immediately\u00a0cease inflammatory rhetoric and force\u00a0mobilisation\u00a0to de-escalate tensions.\u00a0<\/p>\n Furthermore, as Commander-in-Chief, President Kiir bears a heightened duty to exercise effective control over forces. Other senior officials such as the\u00a0Chief of\u00a0Defence\u00a0Forces\u00a0and the\u00a0Minister of\u00a0Defence\u00a0also\u00a0share\u00a0in\u00a0this duty.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Commission also called on South Sudan\u2019s regional and international partners to urgently re-engage to preserve the peace\u00a0deal\u00a0and press leaders to return to the political path.\u00a0<\/p>\n Failure to do so risks an all-out ethnic conflict and another preventable tragedy, they\u00a0said.\u00a0<\/p>\nOngoing hostilities<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Put people first<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
\u2018Risk of mass violence\u2019<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Dangerous words<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Appeal for de-escalation<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Avert a catastrophe<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n