UN Security Council mission visits southern Sudan for talks on peace accord

Members of the United Nations Security Council met senior southern Sudan officials in their main town, Juba, today for talks on the peace agreement concluded last year to bring an end to over two decades of civil strife in that part of Africa’s largest country, a UN spokesman said.

The Council members met with southern Sudanese President Salva Kiir, First Vice-President Riek Machar and other senior officials for discussions that focused on the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the Sudanese government and the rebels of western Sudan’s Darfur region.

They also discussed the Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), which is notorious for conscripting and sexually abusing children and displacing millions across three African countries.

The leader of the Council delegation, British Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry, held a joint news conference with Mr. Kiir, fielding questions on reports of planned talks between an LRA delegation and the Government of Uganda, facilitated by the Government of Southern Sudan.

Earlier this week, the Security Council delegation met with Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir and other senior Government leaders, as well as members of parliament.

It is scheduled to visit Darfur and cross the border to Chad where hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees are living in camps.

Overall, three years of fighting in Darfur between the government forces, pro-government militias and rebels have killed scores of thousands of people and displaced some 2 million others amid charges of civilian massacre, rape and other atrocities.