UN votes to boost UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan from 7,000 to 12,500 troops

The U.N. Security Council has voted to temporarily increase the U.N. peacekeeping force in conflict-torn South Sudan to 12,500 troops from 7,000, a nearly 80 per cent increase.

The resolution adopted unanimously Tuesday by the U.N.’s most powerful body will also increase the U.N.’s international police contingent from 900 to 1,323.

To reach the new levels, the council authorized the temporary transfer of troops, police and equipment from U.N. missions in Congo, Darfur, Abyei, Ivory Coast and Liberia. The U.N. also wants attack helicopters for South Sudan.

The council condemned the fighting and violence against civilians and ethnic communities that have caused hundreds of deaths across South Sudan, and reported human rights violations by all parties.

It called for “an immediate cessation of hostilities and the immediate opening of a dialogue.”