UNSC vote on South Sudan arms embargo, sanctions – Renewal urged

Security Council Vote Set for Friday, May 29

The Sentry Urges Renewal of UN Arms Embargo and Targeted Sanctions for South Sudan

May 28, 2020 (Washington, D.C.) – The United Nations Security Council is expected to vote tomorrow on a resolution to renew the South Sudan sanctions regime—including targeted sanctions and an arms embargo—which expires on May 31st. The Sentry, which has produced a series of investigative reports exposing high level corruption and profiteering linked to mass atrocities and human rights abuses in South Sudan, strongly urges the renewal of both the arms embargo and targeted sanctions.

John Prendergast, Co-Founder of The Sentry, said: “The same greed-fueled schemes that incentivized the war remain in full force as South Sudan’s politicians and military officials try to outmaneuver each other in a race to loot the state. When nearly every economic and government sector has been captured for corrupt private gain, in a country where there are now three times as many generals as doctors, when the peace deal is hanging on by a thread, the last thing the United Nations Security Council should be considering is lifting the arms embargo and removing targeted sanctions.”

Brian Adeba, Deputy Director of Policy at The Sentry, said: “It took almost four years and countless hours of diplomatic efforts to stop the war in South Sudan. Now, the tenuous peace deal is threatened as government troops and hold-out rebels continue fighting in several theaters around the country. Communities are being terrorized and people displaced in great numbers. Even in the middle of the pandemic, there has been no pause in political brinkmanship and mutual belligerence by South Sudan’s politicians. To ensure that the peace deal remains on track and to prevent a return to war, the United Nations Security Council should do the right thing this week and renew both the arms embargo and targeted sanctions on South Sudan.”

Read The Sentry’s “Taking of South Sudan” investigative report series: https://thesentry.org/reports/explore-the-series/

For media inquiries or interview requests, please contact: Greg Hittelman, Director of Communications, +1 310 717 0606, [email protected]

ABOUT THE SENTRY

The Sentry is an investigative and policy team that follows the dirty money connected to African war criminals and transnational war profiteers and seeks to shut those benefiting from violence out of the international financial system. By disrupting the cost-benefit calculations of those who hijack governments for self-enrichment in East and Central Africa, the deadliest war zone globally since World War II, we seek to counter the main drivers of conflict and create new leverage for peace, human rights, and good governance. The Sentry is composed of financial investigators, international human rights lawyers, and regional experts, as well as former law enforcement agents, intelligence officers, policymakers, investigative journalists, and banking professionals. Co-founded by George Clooney and John Prendergast, The Sentry is a flagship initiative and strategic partner of the Clooney Foundation for Justice.

Learn more at www.TheSentry.org.