UN mission withdraws from Sudan’s Kadugli following deadly attack on peacekeepers

ISTANBUL

The United Nations Interim Force for Abyei (UNISFA) announced on Thursday the evacuation of its logistics base in Kadugli in Sudan’s South Kordofan state following a deadly attack that targeted its personnel.

On Dec. 13, six Bangladeshi peacekeepers were killed and eight others injured in a drone attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the headquarters of the UN mission in Kadugli.

In a statement, UNISFA said that the decision to withdraw its peacekeepers was taken following “an extensive assessment of the prevailing security situation in Kadugli, which has disabled the capacity for the UN to function in the area.”

The UN mission reaffirmed its commitment to the implementation of its mandate in the area, noting that it is closely monitoring developments on the ground.

“We will reconsider the resumption of our activities in Kadugli when the situation permits,” it added.

UNISFA was deployed in 2011 after tensions escalated in the oil-rich area between Sudan and neighboring South Sudan.

Kadugli has been under siege imposed by the RSF and the allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) since the early months of the war and has been subjected to repeated artillery and drone attacks, according to human rights organizations.

The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has since killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.