News (Consolidated) - UNSOM

More than ten cultural groups within the Torit municipal council area, religious leaders, artists and Youth Peace Ambassadors recently engaged in various activities aimed at engendering community cohesion through nonviolent approaches. Different Communities shared local wine and a traditional beer…

It was an orange day at the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), with orange balloons, orange t-shirts, and orange ribbons on display at an orange expo. “You can see here, on the wall, what UNPOL [UN Police] is doing,” explains Veli Pekka Ylaetalo from Finland, at the UN Police stall. He is the team…

As the United Nations plane heads towards the town of Renk, the pilot informs all those on board that he needs to do a quick flyover of the airstrip to ensure it is in good enough shape to accommodate a landing. He expertly steers the aircraft down towards the ground so that he can do a low sweep…

Grasping their bibles, hymn-books and tightly clutching onto their crosses, over 6,000 congregants prayed, sang, and danced. They had gathered at the Zion Episcopal Church of South Sudan: to give thanks for the signing of the revitalised peace agreement, and to pray that its implementation goes on…

Businessman Angelo Geng spent two weeks stuck on the road between the towns of Bentiu and Ajak Kuach after his car became bogged down in mud caused by heavy downpours during the rainy season. “I was stranded because of the road conditions and no-one came to our rescue,” he said. The roads in the…

It’s early morning and the fiery tentacles of the rising sun are already reaching out to touch those gathering at the starting line of the mini-marathon event being held at the United Nations base in Juba. The event has been organized to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS as part of an international…

The residents of Yei woke to an early morning colourful procession of boda boda motorcyclists wearing bright reflective jackets and safety helmets, carrying only female passengers in a symbolic gesture of their united efforts to end sexual violence against women and girls. The boda boda riders were…

“The children in this place are our own. They are our brothers and sisters, we will not put them in harm’s way.” These emotional remarks by Jamus Ayut, the County Commissioner in Akobo, set the scene at the opening of a two-day workshop on child protection for 50 soldiers from the Sudan Peoples’…

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan has condemned a series of brutal sexual attacks on women and girls travelling from their villages to the town of Bentiu in the Unity region of South Sudan. Approximately 125 women and girls have sought medical treatment after having been raped or sexually…

Senior members of the Islamic Council and Christian faith-based institutions in Yei have ended a three-day workshop with a call for an end to hate speech and religious division. The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese said it was high time all religious institutions showed a unity of purpose by using…

UNMISS PoC sites Update No.220

Eighty-year-old Nyapuoka Gatkuoth Geer has seen a lot of suffering during the conflict that erupted across South Sudan five years ago. In the southern Unity region, where she lives, fierce fighting between armed groups forced thousands of people to flee their homes. Many took their families into the…