Kenya angry at UN, withdraws all troops in South Sudan, quits 'peace process'

Kenya says it has withdrawn all its all of its troops from South Sudan. It has discontinued plans to contribute to a regional protection force and “disengage from the South Sudan Peace Process.”

The country’s position stems from the decision by the United Nations (UN) Secretary general’s decision to dismiss the Kenyan commander of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

A statement from the presidency said, Kenya was dismayed at the dismissal of Lt. Gen. Johnson Mogoa Kimani Ondieki and that it “takes great exception to this decision and the proposal by the United Nations Secretary General.”

Wow, Kenya is withdrawing all troops from #SouthSudan and disengaging from peace process after dismissal of Kenyan UNMISS chief pic.twitter.com/b7kL0Ni3kE

— Siobhán O'Grady (@siobhan_ogrady) November 2, 2016

Ban Ki-moon ordered the replacement of Ondieki after an independent report found that under his watch, the UNMISS failed to respond to an attack on civilians by South Sudanese government troops at the Hotel Terrain in the capital Juba in July, less than a mile from a U.N. compound, a U.N. inquiry reported on Tuesday.

It found a “lack of preparedness, ineffective command and control and a risk-averse or ‘inward-looking’ posture resulted in a loss of trust and confidence – particularly by the local population and humanitarian agencies – in the will and skill of UNMISS military, (and) police to be proactive and show a determined posture to protect civilians under threat.”

The security situation in South Sudan has been of concern to countries in the Horn of Africa region. The withdrawal of Kenya’s over 1000 strong troops will affect the already volatile security situation.