{"id":1036,"date":"2026-10-29T06:56:01","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T06:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036"},"modified":"2026-10-29T06:56:02","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T06:56:02","slug":"un-warns-south-sudans-first-elections-could-trigger-wider-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036","title":{"rendered":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Jenifer James<\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Sudan faces the risk of a wider war as political tensions deepen, fighting resumes and the country\u2019s fragile peace agreement comes under increasing strain ahead of its planned first elections, Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, has warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Sooka said recent political developments, including changes to the constitutional process and the dissolution of the transitional government, threaten the country\u2019s fragile peace process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She cited the government\u2019s abandonment of the permanent constitution in July and President Salva Kiir\u2019s dissolution of the transitional government in September, followed by the establishment of a caretaker administration, as developments undermining the transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sooka described the changes as a \u201cconstitutional coup through legislative means,\u201d expressing concern that the new administration was \u201canswerable to him alone.\u201d She questioned whether the political environment would allow for an inclusive process and credible elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former First Vice-President Riek Machar remains detained, while opposition figures face exclusion from the political process. Fighting has also resumed, and tens of thousands of fighters remain outside a unified command structure, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cElections under these conditions risk triggering a wider war,\u201d Sooka warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She further cautioned that the concentration of political power ahead of the polls could undermine democratic competition, arguing that \u201cde facto one-party rule\u201d had emerged before a single vote had been cast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sooka also warned that the elections could risk \u201cgiving democratic cover to the destruction of the peace agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the political crisis, she raised concerns about the impact of renewed military operations on civilians and humanitarian access. She cited orders for civilians, peacekeepers and humanitarian agencies to leave Akobo ahead of planned military operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The town hosts an estimated 270,000 people, according to the figures cited in her remarks, raising concerns about the potential consequences of military action for civilians and humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recalling the 2025 attack on a M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res hospital in Old Fangak, which she said killed seven people, Sooka stressed that the effects of violence continue long after an attack ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe harm endures long after the aircraft leave,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also highlighted the recruitment of children by armed groups, conflict-related sexual violence against women and girls, and the appointment of commanders accused of serious violations to state forces without proper vetting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sooka criticised appointments involving individuals subject to United Nations Security Council sanctions, warning that such decisions could undermine accountability and efforts to protect civilians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, safeguards to ensure credible elections, continued humanitarian assistance and accountability for serious human rights violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also urged progress towards establishing the African Union Hybrid Court, envisaged under South Sudan\u2019s peace agreement to address serious crimes committed during the conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSouth Sudanese want to live without fear and determine their own future,\u201d Sooka said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

South Sudan faces the risk of a wider war as political tensions deepen, fighting resumes and the country\u2019s fragile peace agreement comes under increasing strain ahead of its planned first elections, Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, has warned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1037,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_tdlc_coverage_id":0,"_tdlc_timeline_at":"","_tdlc_timeline_label":"","_tdno_assigned_editor":1,"_tdno_approval_notes":"","_thedawn_video_url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[38],"class_list":["post-1036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-following"],"yoast_head":"\nUN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Sudan faces the risk of a wider war as political tensions deepen, fighting resumes and the country\u2019s fragile peace agreement comes under increasing strain ahead of its planned first elections, Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, has warned.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"318\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"343\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309\"},\"headline\":\"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036\"},\"wordCount\":510,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-114.png\",\"keywords\":[\"following\"],\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036\",\"name\":\"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-114.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-114.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-114.png\",\"width\":318,\"height\":343},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1036#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"description\":\"Welcome to The Dawn Newspaper\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"The Dawn\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg\",\"width\":308,\"height\":314,\"caption\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/Thedawn.com.ss\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?author=3\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper","og_description":"South Sudan faces the risk of a wider war as political tensions deepen, fighting resumes and the country\u2019s fragile peace agreement comes under increasing strain ahead of its planned first elections, Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, has warned.","og_url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036","og_site_name":"The Dawn Newspaper","article_published_time":"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00","og_image":[{"width":318,"height":343,"url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"The Dawn Newspaper","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"The Dawn Newspaper","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036"},"author":{"name":"The Dawn Newspaper","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/person\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309"},"headline":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War","datePublished":"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036"},"wordCount":510,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png","keywords":["following"],"articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036","name":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War - The Dawn Newspaper","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png","datePublished":"2026-10-29T06:56:01+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-29T06:56:02+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-114.png","width":318,"height":343},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1036#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"UN Warns South Sudan\u2019s First Elections Could Trigger Wider War"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#website","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","description":"Welcome to The Dawn Newspaper","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization"},"alternateName":"The Dawn","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg","width":308,"height":314,"caption":"The Dawn Newspaper"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/person\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"The Dawn Newspaper"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/Thedawn.com.ss"],"url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?author=3"}]}},"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1036"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1036\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1038,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1036\/revisions\/1038"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}