United Nations Security Council Resolution 2406 – Reports of the Secretary-General on the Sudan and South Sudan

Resolution 2406 (2018)

The Security Council,

Recalling its previous resolutions 1996 (2011), 2046 (2012), 2057 (2012), 2109 (2013), 2132 (2013), 2155 (2014), 2187 (2014), 2206 (2015), 2223 (2015), 2241 (2015), 2252 (2015), 2302 (2016), 2304 (2016), 2327 (2016), and 2392 (2017), and statements by its President S/PRST/2014/16, S/PRST/2014/26, S/PRST/2015/9, S/PRST/2016/1, S/PRST/2016/3, S/PRST/2017/4, and S/PRST/2017/25,

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity of the Republic of South Sudan, and recalling the importance of the principles of non-interference, good-neighbourliness, and regional cooperation,

Reiterating its increasingly grave alarm and concern regarding the political, security, economic, and humanitarian crisis in South Sudan, and subsequent violence caused by the country’s political and military leaders since December 2013, and emphasizing there can be no military solution to the situation in South Sudan,

Expressing deep alarm over the increasing scope of the violence across the country, strongly condemning armed clashes and violence involving the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), SPLA-In Opposition (SPLA-IO), SPLA-IO (Taban), and armed groups, further condemning in the strongest terms the ongoing fighting in violation of the 21 December 2017 “Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities, Protection of Civilians, and Humanitarian Access” (the ACOH), welcoming the rapid assessment of these violations by the Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), and encouraging the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to share reports with the Security Council rapidly,

Deeply regretting that the parties have disregarded its Presidential Statements of 23 March 2017 and 14 December 2017, most notably the provisions on adhering to a permanent ceasefire and allowing the unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance to those in need, and recalling the 4 September 2016 Joint Communique by the Transitional Government of National Unity of South Sudan and United Nations Security Council Members and regretting its lack of implementation by the Government of South Sudan,

Welcoming the commitment and efforts of IGAD, the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC), the African Union (AU), the African Union Peaceand Security Council (AUPSC), and the United Nations (UN) to continue engaging with South Sudanese leaders to address the current crisis, and encouraging their continued and proactive engagement,

Taking note of the 2015 “Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan” (the Agreement), IGAD-led High Level Revitalization Forum for the Agreement, and the ACOH, calling on South Sudanese parties to demonstrate the political will to peacefully resolve the conflict, and stressing that the IGAD High-Level Revitalization Forum is a unique window of opportunity, but equally a last chance for the parties to achieve sustainable peace and stability in South Sudan, and noting that timelines for the implementation schedule of the Agreement should be amended to reflect the need to create an environment conducive to post-transition elections,

Taking note of the communiqués of the 12 June 2017 31st Extraordinary Summit of the IGAD Assembly Heads of State and Government, the 20 September 2017 Ministerial of the African Union Peace and Security Council, the 60th Extraordinary Session of IGAD Council of Ministers on the Situation in South Sudan, and the 8 February 2018 African Union Peace and Security Council meeting on the Status on the Revitalization Process for the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan, as well as the 12 January Joint Statement by the Chairperson of the African Union and the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the Situation in South Sudan and the 27 January 2018 AU, IGAD, and the UN Consultative Meeting on the Republic of South Sudan Joint Statement, and further taking note that the AU, IGAD, and the United Nations Security Council demanded that parties that violate the ACOH must be held accountable,

Recalling its 14 December 2017 Presidential Statement that there must be costs and consequences for those who undermine the High Level Revitalization Forum process and to that end, further recalling that individuals or entities responsible for or complicit in, or having engaged in, directly or indirectly, actions or policies that threaten the peace, security or stability of South Sudan, may be designated for targeted sanctions pursuant to resolution 2206 (2015), 2271 (2016), 2280 (2016), 2290 (2016), and 2353 (2017), including individuals who engage in attacks against United Nations missions, international security presences, or other peacekeeping operations, or humanitarian personnel and recalling its willingness to impose targeted sanctions,

Commending the work of the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS), and stressing the importance of effective engagement and liaison with local communities, as well as humanitarian actors, including through regular communication about the UNMISS mandate, including its planned actions and capacities, security threats and related information, both within and outside the Protection of Civilians sites, in order to fulfil UNMISS’s Protection of Civilians mandate,

Recognizing that unarmed civilian protection can often complement efforts to build a protective environment, particularly in the deterrence of sexual and gender-based violence against civilians, and encouraging UNMISS, as appropriate and when possible, to explore how it can use civilian protection techniques to enhance its ability to protect civilians,

Recognizing the dire humanitarian situation and high levels of food insecurity in many parts of the country, and in this regard noting the importance of UNMISS’s contribution to creating through coordination with humanitarian actors, displaced communities, and authorities the conditions for the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of IDPs and refugees, so that they may resume their livelihoods including the cultivation of land for food production,

Strongly condemning the continued obstruction of UNMISS by the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGNU) and opposition groups, including severe restrictions on freedom of movement, assault of UNMISS personnel, and constraints on mission operations, many of which were reported by the Secretary-General as violations of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) by the TGNU,

Demanding that all parties, particularly the TGNU and the SPLA-IO, end all obstructions to UNMISS, including inter alia carrying out its mandate to monitor and investigate human rights,

Recalling its strong condemnation of all instances of attacks against civilians, including violence against women, children, and persons in vulnerable situations, ethnically targeted violence, hate speech, and incitements to violence, and further expressing deep concern at the possibility that what began as a political conflict could continue to transform into an outright ethnic war, as noted by the Special Advisor for the Prevention of Genocide Adama Dieng,

Strongly condemning all human rights violations and abuses and violations of international humanitarian law, including those involving extrajudicial killings, ethnically targeted violence, rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence, recruitment and use of children, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and detention, violence aimed at spreading terror among the civilian population, targeting of members of civil society, and attacks on schools, places of worship, hospitals, medical facilities and transport, United Nations and associated personnel, and humanitarian personnel, by all parties, including armed groups and national security forces, as well as the incitement to commit such abuses and violations, further condemning harassment, targeting, and censorship of civil society, humanitarian personnel and journalists and emphasizing that those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights must be held accountable, and that South Sudan’s TGNU bears the primary responsibility to protect its populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity,

Taking note of the UNMISS and Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights report on the Freedom of Expression in South Sudan, condemning the use of media to broadcast hate speech and transmit messages instigating violence against a particular ethnic group, a practice that has the potential to play a significant role in promoting mass violence and exacerbating conflict, and calling on the Government of South Sudan to immediately condemn and counter increasing hate speech and ethnic violence and to promote reconciliation among its people, including through a process of justice and accountability,

Expressing grave concern at the findings of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict of the systematic and widespread use of sexual violence as a tactic by parties to the conflict against the civilian population, particularly against women and girls in South Sudan,

Stressing the urgent need to end impunity in South Sudan and to hold accountable and bring to justice all perpetrators for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights, and further stressing the importance of accountability, reconciliation and healing in ending impunity and ensuring a sustainable peace, and in this regard, sharing the concern of the AUPSC about the delays in establishing the Hybrid Court for South Sudan,

Taking note with interest of the reports on the human rights situation in South Sudan issued by UNMISS and the Secretary-General, as well as the report of the AU Commission of Inquiry on South Sudan and the Separate Opinion, expressing grave concern that according to some reports, including the AU Commission of Inquiry report on South Sudan, released on 27 October 2015, there were reasonable grounds to believe that war crimes and crimes against humanity had been committed and the report of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, released on 23 February 2018 that war crimes and crimes against humanity may have been committed, emphasizing its hope that these and other credible reporting will be duly considered by any transitional justice and reconciliation mechanisms for South Sudan including those established in the Agreement, stressing the importance of collection and preservation of evidence for eventual use by the Hybrid Court for South Sudan, and encouraging efforts in this regard,

Expressing serious and urgent concern over the more than four million displaced persons and deepening humanitarian crisis, including an estimated 5.3 million that face severe food insecurity according to the January 2018 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report, which reflects a 40 percent increase from January 2017, and seven million in need of life-saving assistance, and that half of the country’s children are out of school, stressing the responsibility borne by all parties to the conflict for the immense suffering of the people of South Sudan, including the destruction or damage to livelihoods and productive assets, commending United Nations humanitarian agencies, partners, and donors for their efforts to provide urgent and coordinated support to the population, and calling upon the international community to continue these efforts to meet the growing humanitarian needs of the people of South Sudan,

Condemning the obstructions by all parties to civilians’ movement and to humanitarian actors’ movement to reach civilians in need of assistance, expressing concern at the increasing ad hoc legislation, new taxes, and permits which are hampering the delivery of humanitarian assistance across the country, and recalling the need for all parties to the conflict to allow and facilitate, in accordance with relevant provisions of international law and United Nations guiding principles of humanitarian assistance, including humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence, the full, safe and unhindered access of relief personnel, equipment and supplies and timely delivery of humanitarian assistance, to all those in need, in particular to internally displaced persons (IDPs), and refugees,

Condemning all attacks against humanitarian personnel and facilities that resulted in the deaths of at least 98 personnel since December 2013, including the attack on the Terrain compound on 11 July 2016 and attacks against medical personnel and hospitals, noting with alarm the increasing trend of harassment and intimidation of humanitarian personnel, and recalling that attacks against humanitarian personnel and objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population may amount to violations of international humanitarian law,

Expressing its deep appreciation for the actions taken by UNMISS peacekeepers and Troop- and Police-Contributing Countries in implementing the UNMISS mandate in a challenging environment, including in protecting civilians, including foreign nationals, under threat of physical violence and to stabilize the security situation within and beyond UNMISS sites, and stressing that any national caveat that negatively affects the implementation of mandate effectiveness should not be accepted by the Secretary-General, and further highlighting that lack of effective command and control, refusal to obey orders, failure to respond to attacks on civilians, inadequate equipment, and financial resources may adversely affect the shared responsibility for effective mandate implementation,

Welcoming the commitment of the Secretary-General to enforce strictly his zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse, noting the various measures taken by UNMISS and Troop- and Police-contributing countries to combat sexual exploitation and abuse, but still expressing grave concern over recent allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse reportedly committed by peacekeepers in South Sudan, stressing the urgent need for Troop- and Police-contributing countries and, as appropriate, UNMISS, to promptly investigate those allegations in a credible and transparent manner and for those responsible for such criminal offences or misconduct to be held to account, and further stressing the need to prevent such exploitation and abuse and to improve how these allegations are addressed in line with resolution 2272 (2016),

Recognizing the significant resource and capacity challenges UNMISS faces in implementing its mandate, expressing appreciation for UNMISS’s ongoing efforts to ensure the safety of IDPs seeking protection on its sites, while recognizing the importance of finding sustainable solutions for IDPs in keeping with the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, and underlining in this regard the need to extend its presence, including through proactive deployment and patrolling, to areas of displacement, return, and local integration,

Emphasizing that persistent barriers to full implementation of resolution 1325 (2000), and subsequent resolutions on women, peace, and security including 2242 (2015), will only be dismantled through dedicated commitment to women’s empowerment, participation, and human rights, concerted leadership, consistent information and action, and support, to build women’s engagement in all levels of decision-making, and through ensuring that the full and effective participation and involvement of women in all spheres and levels of the political and peace process,

Expressing grave concern regarding the threats made to oil installations, petroleum companies and their employees, and urging all parties to ensure the security of economic infrastructure, condemning attacks on oil installations, petroleum companies and their employees, and any fighting around these facilities, and urging all parties to ensure the security of economic infrastructure,

Recalling its resolution 2117 (2013) and expressing grave concern at the threat to peace and security in South Sudan arising from the illicit transfer, destabilizing accumulation and misuse of small arms and light weapons,

Strongly condemning the attacks by government and opposition forces and other groups on United Nations and IGAD personnel and facilities, including the December 2012 downing of a United Nations helicopter by the SPLA, the April 2013 attack on a United Nations convoy, the December 2013 attack on the UNMISS camp in Akobo,the August 2014 shooting down of a United Nations helicopter by unidentified armed groups, the August 2014 arrest and detention of an IGAD monitoring and verification team, the October 2015 seizure and detention of UNMISS personnel and equipment in Upper Nile State by opposition forces, the February 2016 attack on the Malakal protection of civilians site, the July 2016 attack on the Juba protection of civilians site, and the Terrain Compound attack, the detention and kidnappings of United Nations and associated personnel, the repeated attacks on the UNMISS camps in Bor, Bentiu, Malakal and Melut, and the disappearance purportedly caused by SPLA forces, and deaths of three United Nations-affiliated national staff and one national contractor in Upper Nile State, and calling upon the Government of South Sudan to complete its investigations of these attacks in a swift and thorough manner and to hold those responsible to account,

Taking note of the reports of the Secretary-General pursuant to resolution 2304 (2016) paragraphs 16 and 18, and of resolution 2327 (2016) paragraphs 31 and 32, and the recommendations contained therein,

Determining that the situation in South Sudan continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

Adopted by the Security Council at its 8204th meeting, on 15 March 2018.