Recalled Kenya Defence Forces soldiers who were serving under a UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan have begun arriving home.
The first batch of 100 troops landed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport yesterday afternoon to a warm reception from their compatriots. Major-General Benjamin Biwott said more soldiers from the 1,000 Kenyan contingent based in Wahu area will arrive in subsequent days depending on logistical support availed by the United Nations.
“We have started our withdrawal from South Sudan following orders from the Commander in Chief,” he said. Their withdrawal follows the sacking of UNmiss force commander Lt-Gen Johnson Ondieki by UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon over failure to protect civilians during sporadic clashes.
Kenya said last week it would pull its forces out after a UN inquiry accused UNmiss of failing to respond to an attack on a Juba hotel during fighting in July. Subsequently, President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered Kenyan troops to withdraw from the civil-war ravaged country, a day after the sacking of the Lt Ondieki.
A strongly-worded statement from the Foreign Affairs Ministry said the continued deployment of KDF in South Sudan was “no longer tenable” saying the country would withdraw its forces.
Ondieki had just taken office barely three weeks before the violence in Juba between July 8 and 11 that led to the killing of dozens of people and rape of at least five foreign aid workers.
Address issue
The report said peacekeepers did not act when soldiers attacked an aid compound in Juba. In its statement, Kenya said Ban’s decision to sack Ondieki failed to address the root causes of the problem highlighted in the report.
South Sudan spokesperson Michael Makuei Lueth in statement to newsrooms said he understands the key role Kenya plays in the peace process in South Sudan, particularly the deployment to the UNmiss.
“It is on this basis that TGoNU requests the UN to reconsider its decision. We also plead with Kenya to be patient as we hope the UN reviews the decision and amicably resolves the matter in conformity with standard operating procedures and to create mutual understanding among the key stakeholders,” read the statement in part.
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