UN vows to protect 65,000 in South Sudan

Joint police and military patrols and the use of metal detectors are among the security steps being taken by the U.N. peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to protect 65,000 displaced civilians seeking refuge on and near its bases. “An array of security measures have been put in place,” the mission said Thursday. It noted that U.N. Police Commissioner Fred Yiga is meeting regularly with South Sudan’s police inspector-general and with the Central Equatoria police commissioner to address all security concerns.U.N. police (UNPOL) supported by UNMISS military forces are leading the searches and jointly patrolling inside and near all the U.N. bases, while U.N. troops are guarding the fortified perimeters.“Another 63 additional U.N. police personnel arrived yesterday, bringing the total number of UNPOL reinforcements to 315,” UNMISS said. A new group of reinforcements will arrive next week, completing a more robust security unit authorized by the U.N. Security Council last month.UNMISS reiterated that it is impartial in the ongoing conflict, and in the implementation of its mandate to protect all civilians “irrespective of who they are, where they come from, and what their ethnic background is.”The fighting between government and rebel forces has continued despite political talks with the parties in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa that seek to establish a cease-fire.