South Sudan’s Kiir tells US he will sign peace deal -US spokesman

That article cited unnamed sources who said that the State Department and U.S. mission to the United Nations had long been open to punitive measures, but that opposition from the National Security Council was responsible for blocking such action from coming sooner.

He noted the resolution would impose an arms embargo and additional sanctions. However, details of who might be targeted have not yet been released.

The government, which has called the proposed deal a “sellout”, says it is not possible to sign a credible peace accord because the rebel forces have split.

“It’s quite a technical resolution, so I think it will take quite a bit of work to get everyone on the same page”, Gerard van Bohemen, New Zealand’s permanent representative to the United Nations, told AP. Kiir, however, refused to do so.

“If it’s true, it is deeply concerning to us and manifestly unhelpful to moving forward with the peace process”, Kirby told a daily briefing, adding: “Again, we urge the government … to sign in order to move forward”.

The United States and Britain pushed for UN sanctions against South Sudan’s government Tuesday, over its failure to sign a peace deal to end a brutal two-year civil war.

He said in Wau that the stand of the government is the finding of an amicable and lasting solution to the conflict in South Sudan. Over 18-months some 50,000 people have been killed and two million displaced in a conflict notorious for its brutality.

“The leader of any country threatening to kill journalists is extremely unsafe and utterly unacceptable”, the CPJ’s Tom Rhodes said in a statement.

Kiir asked for another 15 days to consider the peace deal brokered by regional leaders, shrugging off pressure to meet a Monday deadline.

“If the government will not sign up to the IGAD-plus deal, then we must all be firm on our next steps”, British Deputy Ambassador Peter Wilson told the 15-member Security Council.

Mr Kiir has also been under fire from diplomats for failing to sign a peace deal on Monday.

“The government’s army attacked our posts at Imatong mountains only hours after signing the peace document in Addis Ababa“, rebel chief Riek Machar said in a statement.

“We can not sit by while leaders fight and their people’s suffering grows”.

Although Moi’s murder can not, for the time being, be directly linked to his journalistic work or President Kiir’s comment, it comes against a backdrop of extreme violence for journalists in South Sudan. Last month, IGAD set 17 August as the deadline to end the drawn-out talks, outlining proposals for ending the fighting.

The Security Council blacklisted six rival generals in South Sudan in July, the first people to be subjected to a global asset freeze and travel ban.