South Sudan crisis: April 2015 update

Abstract

The Sudan conflict has been one of the longest running in contemporary African history. This paper provides an update on the current crisis in South Sudan. Executive summary In mid-December 2013, the newly formed country of South Sudan erupted into violence, creating a significant humanitarian crisis. Violence spread rapidly across the country, mainly along ethnic lines, and thousands were killed. The United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) came under attack with two Indian peacekeepers killed. The UN Security Council adopted a resolution on 24 December 2013 to significantly increase the military and police contribution to UNMISS. Australia contributes military personnel (and previously policing personnel) to UNMISS and provided additional support through strategic airlift operations during the initial stages of the crisis. Despite a peace agreement being reached on 23 January 2014, which included terms for a ceasefire, the violence continues. In the last year, the number of internally displaced people has risen from 709,000 to 1.5 million and those who have sought refuge in neighbouring countries increased from 249,000 to 646,883. Peace negotiations, backed by the United Nations (UN) and the African Union are ongoing, but are yet to produce a sustainable solution to the crisis. In February 2015, an agreement was reached to establish a transitional unity government—however, efforts to progress beyond this point have been continually frustrated by parties on both sides of the conflict. The UN Security Council has threatened to impose sanctions unless progress is made towards establishing the transitional unity government by the 9 July 2015 deadline