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The African Union this week called for a “regional protection force” to bolster a 12,000-strong U.N. peacekeeping mission in the East African country and separate warring parties. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has supported reinforcing the mission. The spokesman for South Sudan’s former rebel leader Riek Machar, now first vice president, says Machar has also called for a “third force” to secure the capital, Juba, after President Salva Kiir’s forces bombed his house during the fighting that raised fears of a return to civil war. The spokesman, James Gatdet Dak, said Machar fled Juba and will not return, despite Kiir’s invitation,...

President Kiir Declares Curfew In Juba As Attempted Coup FailsBy Joe Odaby South Sudan NewsJuba — December 16 … The President of the Republic of South Sudan H.E Salva Kiir Mayardit has imposed a curfew over Juba following heavy gunfire that started early Saturday, December 15, in the city and its suburbs. The situation though is under control; sporadic gunfire still continues to be heard in some parts of the capital. The curfew, the President says takes immediate effect. In a press briefing in the early hours of the day, President Kiir called for calm among the citizens while assuring...

After Years of Struggle, South Sudan Becomes a New Nation By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN JUBA, South Sudan — The celebrations erupted at midnight. Thousands of revelers poured into Juba’s steamy streets in the predawn hours on Saturday, hoisting enormous flags, singing, dancing and leaping on the back of cars. “Freedom!” they screamed. A new nation was being born in what used to be a forlorn, war-racked patch of Africa, and to many it seemed nothing short of miraculous. After more than five decades of an underdog, guerrilla struggle and two million lives lost, the Republic of South Sudan, Africa’s 54th state,...

The Sudanese government has said the UN cannot move new troops to its tense North-South border without its consent. It comes after the UN's peacekeeping chief said troops would be sent to "hotspots" at the request of the semi-autonomous South's president... in the run-up to a referendum on Southern independence due to be held in January... The referendum was part of a 2005 peace deal that ended the civil war. On Friday, UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy said the UN force would increase its presence along the 2,000km (1,250 mile) border. He said the increase would be limited to...