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U.S. sanctions two South Sudan military leaders

07 May 2014 00:03 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The United States on Tuesday announced sanctions on two leaders respectively from South Sudan's government and rebel forces engaged in months-old conflict, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

The Department of Treasury targeted Marial Chanuong, commander of the South Sudanese presidential guard, and Peter Gadet, a leader of the anti-government forces loyal to former deputy president Riek Machar.

The move entails sanctions that freeze all of their assets under U.S. jurisdiction and bar U.S. citizens from doing business with them.

"The violence and human rights abuses perpetrated by the government of South Sudan and Riek Machar's opposition forces must end," David Cohen, under secretary of Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.

Secretary of State John Kerry accused the pair of "perpetrating unthinkable violence against civilians," as tens of thousands of people have been killed since conflict broke out in December when President Salva Kiir accused Machar of attempting to orchestrate a military coup against him.

"We will do our utmost to prevent South Sudan from plunging back towards violence and despair," Kerry told reporters after meeting with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton at the State Department.

"We will hold accountable those who have stood in the way of a peace plan," said the top American envoy, who warned in Juba, South Sudan's capital, on Friday that the warring parties must end the violence or face possible sanctions.

A ceasefire agreed in January has failed to stop the fighting, and more than 1.2 million people have been displaced in the conflict.

President Barack Obama signed an executive order last month authorizing sanctions against those in South Sudan whose actions threaten the "peace, security or stability" of the country born about three years ago.