The United States has ordered its non-emergency government personnel in South Sudan to leave the country because of security concerns, the State Department said on Sunday.
“Armed conflict is ongoing and includes fighting between various political and ethnic groups. Weapons are readily available to the population,” the State Department said.
The United Nations rights agency said on Saturday that increased violence and political friction in South Sudan threatened the fragile peace process.
In early March, forces loyal to President Salva Kiir detained two ministers and several senior military officials affiliated with First Vice President Riek Machar. These arrests have intensified fears regarding the stability of the 2018 peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war, resulting in nearly 400,000 fatalities.
The State Department said violent crime including carjackings, shootings, ambushes, assaults, robberies, and kidnappings are common throughout South Sudan, including in Juba.
The area is very dangerous for journalists as well as U.S. government employees, who are under strict curfew and must use armored vehicles for nearly all movements.Â
It comes after a UN helicopter attempting to evacuate personnel from Nasir was attacked, resulting in the deaths of a general and several soldiers. The UN condemned the incident as “utterly reprehensible” and potentially a war crime.
The African Union (AU) also expressed concern, in a statement on Saturday saying it “strongly condemns this violent escalation” and calling for an “immediate end to the hostilities”.
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