JUBA: South Sudan’s president appealed for calm and pledged his country would “not go back to war” after a UN helicopter was attacked and a crew member killed on a rescue mission on Friday.
In recent weeks, a fragile power-sharing agreement between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar has been threatened by clashes between their allied forces in the northeastern Upper Nile State.
The UN Mission in South Sudan, or UNMISS, said its team was attempting to extract members of the South Sudanese army from the area when their helicopter came under fire, killing a crew member and seriously injuring two others.
A South Sudanese army general and other officers were killed in the failed rescue mission, UNMISS said in a statement, saying the incident may constitute a war crime.
Kiir urged citizens to remain calm, saying: “I have said it repeatedly that our country will not go back to war. Let no one take law into their hands.”
“The government which I lead will handle this crisis. We will remain steadfast in the path of peace,” he added.
South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, ended a five-year civil war in 2018 with a power-sharing agreement between bitter rivals Kiir and Machar.
But Kiir’s allies have accused Machar’s forces of fomenting unrest in Nasir County, Upper Nile State, in league with the so-called White Army, a loose band of armed youths in the region from the same ethnic Nuer community as the vice-president.
“The attack on UNMISS personnel is utterly abhorrent and may constitute a war crime under international law,” said head of UNMISS Nicholas Haysom.
“We also regret the killing of those that we were attempting to extract,” he added.
The rebels overran a government garrison in the region on Tuesday, the information minister told reporters earlier this week, adding that a general and several soldiers had survived the attack and were still fighting the rebels.
Kiir’s government responded with multiple arrests of Machar’s allies in the capital Juba, including Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol, deputy army chief General Gabriel Duop Lam and Peacebuilding Minister Stephen Par Kuol.
The latter was released on Friday, according to his spokesman.
UNMISS said its evacuation mission was an attempt to end the violence in Nasir County that had caused “significant casualties and civilian displacement.”
Regional and Western diplomats warned earlier this week that the events threaten the 2018 peace agreement that put an end to a civil war that had killed some 400,000 people.
“Juba-based leaders must demonstrate their commitment to peaceful dialogue and should put the interest of the South Sudanese people first,” said a group embassies including the US, Britain and the EU in a joint statement.
UNMISS also called on the parties to “adhere to their commitment to uphold the ceasefire and protect the integrity” of the peace agreement.
There has also been criticism of recent political moves by Kiir, described by analysts as attempts to consolidate his position and sideline Machar.
Last month, Kiir fired two of the five vice-presidents in his unity government without consulting other stakeholders, and removed the governor of Western Equatoria State, a member of Machar’s movement.