I sometimes despair of all the endless violence in the World, especially in Africa, where it seems to stop only to start right back up again
19 December 2013
Last updated at 19:22 ET
South Sudan has been in turmoil since President Salva Kiir accused his ex-deputy Riek Machar of mounting a coup.
The unrest, which broke out on Sunday, has killed some 500 people so far.
The conflict first erupted in the capital Juba but has since spread.
Mr Kiir, who is a Dinka, has blamed the violence on a group of soldiers who support Mr Machar, a Nuer.
The president accuses them of trying to take power by force on Sunday night in a coup attempt by Mr Machar - a claim the former vice president denies.
'Growing violence' Mr Mukerji announced the Indian troops' deaths at a UN peacekeeping meeting in New York.
There were 43 Indian peacekeepers at the UN compound in the town of Akobo where the attack took place.
A UN spokesman said the attackers, mainly youths, had targeted 32 Dinka civilians who had sought refuge at the base.
Security at the compound has been increased.
The UN has expressed worry about a possible civil war between the Dinka and the Nuer.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was "deeply concerned by reports of growing violence in many parts of South Sudan, human rights abuses and killings fuelled by ethnic tensions".
However, the government insists the clashes are over power and politics, noting that both sides involved in the clashes include leaders from different tribes.
"We condemn in strongest possible terms attempts to depict the coup as ethnic strife," a government statement said.
Many of the internally displaced are from the majority Dinka ethnic community
The UN has expressed concern about a possible civil war between the Dinka and the Nuer ethnic group
Peacekeepers have been building latrines with help from the refugees in the UN base in Juba
President Salva Kiir blames his former vice-president for the violence
Foreign nationals, and many locals too, are trying to leave the country as fears of a civil war mount
The UN is sheltering more than 30,000 civilians in five state capitals, including Juba and Bor.
Early on Thursday, Nuer rebels seized control of Bor. Even before the unrest, the town was seen as one of the most volatile areas of South Sudan.
Mr Machar was sacked by Mr Kiir in July.
The UN has called for political dialogue to end the crisis, and the Ugandan government says its president has been asked by the UN to mediate between the two sides.
A delegation of East African foreign ministers earlier arrived in Juba to try to mediate in the crisis.
Britain and the US have both sent planes to airlift their nationals out of the country, and a US defence official described the situation as "getting ugly".
South Sudan has struggled to achieve a stable government since becoming independent in 2011.
The oil-rich country remains ethnically and politically divided, with many armed groups active.
Both Sudan and the South are reliant on
oil revenue, which accounts for 98% of South Sudan's budget. They have
fiercely disagreed over how to divide the oil wealth of the former
united state - at one time production was shutdown for more than a year.
Some 75% of the oil lies in the South but all the pipelines run north.
Indian UN peacekeepers killed in S Sudan attack
UN spokesman Farhan Haq: "We condemn this attack in the strongest terms''
Three
Indian peacekeepers have died in an attack on a United Nations compound
in South Sudan's Jonglei state, India's UN envoy Asoke Mukerji has
said.
Rebels from the second-largest ethnic group, the Nuer,
stormed the base on Thursday, targeting civilians of the majority Dinka
ethnic community.South Sudan has been in turmoil since President Salva Kiir accused his ex-deputy Riek Machar of mounting a coup.
The unrest, which broke out on Sunday, has killed some 500 people so far.
The conflict first erupted in the capital Juba but has since spread.
Mr Kiir, who is a Dinka, has blamed the violence on a group of soldiers who support Mr Machar, a Nuer.
The president accuses them of trying to take power by force on Sunday night in a coup attempt by Mr Machar - a claim the former vice president denies.
'Growing violence' Mr Mukerji announced the Indian troops' deaths at a UN peacekeeping meeting in New York.
There were 43 Indian peacekeepers at the UN compound in the town of Akobo where the attack took place.
A UN spokesman said the attackers, mainly youths, had targeted 32 Dinka civilians who had sought refuge at the base.
Security at the compound has been increased.
Thousands of people have fled the fighting in the north of the country
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was "deeply concerned by reports of growing violence in many parts of South Sudan, human rights abuses and killings fuelled by ethnic tensions".
However, the government insists the clashes are over power and politics, noting that both sides involved in the clashes include leaders from different tribes.
"We condemn in strongest possible terms attempts to depict the coup as ethnic strife," a government statement said.
Many of the internally displaced are from the majority Dinka ethnic community
The UN has expressed concern about a possible civil war between the Dinka and the Nuer ethnic group
Peacekeepers have been building latrines with help from the refugees in the UN base in Juba
President Salva Kiir blames his former vice-president for the violence
Foreign nationals, and many locals too, are trying to leave the country as fears of a civil war mount
Early on Thursday, Nuer rebels seized control of Bor. Even before the unrest, the town was seen as one of the most volatile areas of South Sudan.
Continue reading the main story
Profile: Riek Machar
- Central figure in Sudanese and South Sudanese politics for three decades
- Member of South Sudan's second-largest ethnic group, the Nuer
- Was a Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) commander and led a breakaway faction for some years in the 1990s
- After 2005 peace deal appointed vice-president of interim government, retaining the post after independence in 2011 until his dismissal in July 2013
In an interview with Radio France Internationale, Mr Machar called on the army to remove the president.
"We want him to leave, that's it," he told the station.Mr Machar was sacked by Mr Kiir in July.
The UN has called for political dialogue to end the crisis, and the Ugandan government says its president has been asked by the UN to mediate between the two sides.
A delegation of East African foreign ministers earlier arrived in Juba to try to mediate in the crisis.
Britain and the US have both sent planes to airlift their nationals out of the country, and a US defence official described the situation as "getting ugly".
South Sudan has struggled to achieve a stable government since becoming independent in 2011.
The oil-rich country remains ethnically and politically divided, with many armed groups active.
Both Sudan and the South are reliant on
oil revenue, which accounts for 98% of South Sudan's budget. They have
fiercely disagreed over how to divide the oil wealth of the former
united state - at one time production was shutdown for more than a year.
Some 75% of the oil lies in the South but all the pipelines run north.
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