The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) has completed the withdrawal of all its peacekeepers and national monitors from its Tishwin and Abu Qussa/Wunkur team sites. The withdrawal follows an assessment of the increasingly volatile and unpredictable security situation in the two areas, which has significantly constrained force protection and sustainment of the team sites and hindered the safe and effective delivery of its mandate
The last convoy carrying peacekeepers, national monitors and equipment arrived in Abyei on 6 March. UNISFA expresses its appreciation to the Sudanese and South Sudanese authorities and the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) for supporting the withdrawal process and facilitating the safe movement of the convoy. The departure from the two Joint Border Verification Mechanism (JBVMM) team sites follows last year’s evacuation of the JBVMM logistics base in Kadugli, after an attack on its Bangladeshi peacekeepers.
The JBVMM is responsible for monitoring and verifying the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ). It was established in 2012 after Sudan and South Sudan agreed to establish the SDBZ supported by UNISFA. UNISFA remains committed to promoting peace and stability along the Sudan–South Sudan border and to the implementation of arrangements agreed between the two countries. The mission has temporarily relocated the JBVMM headquarters to Abyei and it continues to closely monitor the evolving situation in the JBVMM Area of Operation while undertaking consultations on future modalities for delivering the JBVMM mandate.
UNISFA would like to reiterate that the safety and security of its peacekeepers remain paramount, and it will continue to engage with the two governments on the delivery of the JBVMM mandate.
