In a setback to global efforts to restore peace in the fledgling nation of South Sudan, five Indian peacekeepers have been killed while escorting a United Nations convoy in Jonglei, the hub of tribal infighting in that country.
The dead included a Lt. Colonel, one junior commissioned officer and three jawans while five were injured including an officer, according to the information given by the Indian ambassador in South Sudan to India’s Foreign Office. The deceased were part of the Indian battalion attached to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). There are around 2,200 Indian Army personnel comprising two battalions, one based in Jonglei and the other in Malakkal, Upper Nile, on the border with Sudan.
The ambush took place around 8.30 am April 9. The deceased Indian peacekeepers, including the injured (together with other local civilian casualties), are being brought by three UN helicopters from Jonglei to South Sudan’s capital Juba, official sources in India’s foreign office said. Official sources added that India’s key priority will be send the injured for emergency treatment at the UN mission hospital in South Sudan. New Delhi is working closely with the UN Mission in South Sudan to bring the bodies of the deceased home.
Sources said the personnel killed in the incident included Lt. Col. Mahipal Singh, Havaldars Heera Lal and Bharat Sasmal from 9 Mechanised Infantry and Naib Subedar Shiv Kumar Pal and soldier Naval Kishore from 6 Mahar.
Unfortunately, the killings have taken place at a time when Sudan and South Sudan are trying to ease their tensions over a host of unresolved issues emanating from the partition of undivided Sudan in July 2011. Sudan President Omar al-Bashir is expected to visit Juba, the capital of South Sudan, later this week.
India has crucial stakes in stability and peaceful coexistence of the two oil-rich Sudans. India’s key priority is to protect its $2.5 billion investment in the oil sector that spans the two countries. In this regard, India has backed the African Union-led peace initiatives to forge enduring peace between Khartoum and Juba.
A day before the ambush killing five Indian peacekeepers, the top United Nations official in South Sudan had urged authorities and communities in Jonglei state, the largest province in South Sudan, to take steps to prevent inter-communal violence and attacks by armed groups which are threatening unleash a new cycle of violence in that country. “The destabilization of Jonglei must stop. I urge the Murle, Lou Nuer and Dinka communities, their leaders, and the Governments of Jonglei and South Sudan to resume – and sincerely engage in – peace initiatives,” Special Representative of the Secretary-General Hilde F. Johnson told journalists in Juba. She added that UNMISS would continue to support these peace processes.
Author Profile
- India Writes Network (www.indiawrites.org) is an emerging think tank and a media-publishing company focused on international affairs & the India Story. Centre for Global India Insights is the research arm of India Writes Network. To subscribe to India and the World, write to editor@indiawrites.org. A venture of TGII Media Private Limited, a leading media, publishing and consultancy company, IWN has carved a niche for balanced and exhaustive reporting and analysis of international affairs. Eminent personalities, politicians, diplomats, authors, strategy gurus and news-makers have contributed to India Writes Network, as also “India and the World,” a magazine focused on global affairs.
Latest entries
DiplomacyNovember 25, 2024Jaishankar champions India-Italy Ties, inaugurates Indian Embassy’s new premises in Rome- In ConversationNovember 24, 2024Putin’s guru calls for “pole-to-pole” India-Russia relations
- India and the WorldNovember 19, 2024Modi Strengthens Global Ties Through Key Bilateral Talks at G20 Summit in Rio
- India and the WorldNovember 19, 2024India, China foreign ministers advance reset in Brazil meeting
