Published • loading... • Updated
UN peacekeepers failed to protect civilians before South Sudan massacre, Amnesty says
Amnesty said UNMISS knew an attack was likely but left about three dozen peacekeepers in place until after armed men struck the village.
- Amnesty International reported Thursday that United Nations peacekeepers and South Sudanese authorities ignored warnings weeks before an insurgent raid on Abiemnom killed more than 200 people earlier this year.
- Between 1,000 and 1,500 armed men from Mayom County carried out The March attack, shooting residents, burning homes and destroying more than 230 structures, with at least 213 people killed.
- UNMISS knew an attack on Abiemnom was likely but failed to reinforce the roughly three dozen peacekeepers stationed there until after violence occurred. Tigere Chagutah, an Amnesty regional director, said their failure to take stronger action cost lives.
- Facing budget cuts and reduced personnel, UNMISS spokesperson Priyanka Chowdhury said the mission concentrated available capacity on protecting roughly 2,500 people at its base. The Security Council reduced authorized troop levels from 17,000 to 12,000 in April.
- Amnesty called for an independent investigation into the killings and a separate review of the peacekeepers' response, with findings made public. Both the South Sudanese Government and UNMISS faced criticism for not taking effective preventive action.
Insights by Ground AI
15 Articles
15 Articles
The human rights organisation, which said that it interviewed dozens of witnesses and victims, revealed on Thursday that both sides had been informed of the possibility of an attack at least two weeks earlier.
Amnesty: UNMISS failed to act before South Sudan attack killed at least 213
Amnesty International said UNMISS and South Sudanese authorities failed to act adequately on warnings before the Abiemnom attack. The alleged failure has intensified demands for public investigations into the killings and peacekeeping response.
·Noida, India
Read Full Article
Associated Press News+11 Reposted by 11 other sources
UN peacekeepers failed to protect civilians before South Sudan massacre, Amnesty says
Amnesty International says U.N. peacekeepers had weeks of warning before an attack killed more than 200 people in South Sudan but failed to do enough to protect civilians.
·New York, United States
Read Full ArticleCoverage Details
Total News Sources15
Leaning Left10Leaning Right2Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution67% Left
Bias Distribution
- 67% of the sources lean Left
67% Left
L 67%
C 20%
13%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
