UN deplores aerial bombardments in S Sudan

UNITED NATIONS - The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Monday deplored the continued aerial bombardments in Bentiu town in South Sudan's Unity state, and called on the world's youngest country and its neighbor, Sudan, to take all measures to ensure the safety of civilians, UN officials said here.

"These indiscriminate bombings resulting in the loss of civilian lives must stop," said the special representative of the UN secretary-general for South Sudan, Hilde F. Johnson.

According to early reports, the bombing started at 8:30 local time, hitting the Rubkona market and leading to the death of at least one person, and wounding at least 10 others.

"I remind the parties to the conflict of their obligation to abide by international human rights and humanitarian law, take all measures not to harm civilians, and guarantee the safety of international aid organizations and United Nations personnel and assets," Johnson said.

Last week, top UN officials spoke out against bombings by Sudanese forces in the cities of Mayom and Bentiu in South Sudan which killed at least eight civilians and wounded 22 others.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also reiterated his deep concern over continuing hostilities between the two countries, and urged their governments to halt the escalating violence along their border areas.

The tug-of-war over the oil-rich Heglig region between Sudan and South Sudan paused momentarily after Sudan announced on Friday that it is reclaiming the region, which is on the north side of the 1956 border between Sudan and South Sudan.

The South Sudanese government said on Friday that it had ordered its army to immediately withdraw from Heglig, two days after Khartoum declared war on Juba.

South Sudan and Sudan have been locked in disputes with the alarming situation being manifested most recently by the seizure and occupation of the town of Heglig and its oil fields in Sudan by South Sudan's army, the SPLA.

The United Nations and the African Union have called on South Sudan to withdraw from the town of Heglig, but Juba insists it has a claim to the territory.