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UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday welcomed the government of South Sudan accepting the deployment of a regional protection force after fighting renewed between rival groups in the country.
The decision to deploy a regional force was made at a summit of an East African bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) on Friday. The scope and mandate of the force has yet to be decided.
Ban commended the decisive action by IGAD leaders and called on South Sudanese leaders to end the crisis through implementing the South Sudan peace deal, said a statement released by Ban's spokesperson.
In July, clashes between government and opposition forces took place in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, killing 272 people, including 33 civilians.
Ban was also concerned by the continued fighting in the country as well as reports of widespread sexual violence against women and young girls, committed by armed men in uniform.
"He calls on all parties to uphold their responsibility to protect civilians and demands that they take immediate steps to hold accountable those responsible for these despicable crimes," said the statement.
South Sudan won independence on July 9, 2011 from Sudan after more than two decades of war that ended in a bitter divorce.
The country plunged into conflict in December 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused his deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup, which led to a cycle of retaliatory killings.
