Photo : AFP/The East African
NIAS Area Studies
AFRICA MONITOR
Photo : AFP/The East African
IN BRIEF
by Apoorva Sudhakar
UNSC extends sanctions on South Sudan; Foreign Ministry calls decision unproductive
On 26 May, the UN Security Council implemented a one-year extension on the sanctions regime on South Sudan. The sanctions include a travel ban, arms embargo, financial restrictions and freezing of assets of designated individuals. On 27 May, the South Sudan Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ministry's press release said the African Union had termed sanctions and arms embargo unproductive in February. The East African quoted from the statement which said the dismissal of the AU’s stance “shows an old hubris with no value for a world shaken by wars, including Africa and Europe.” (“Security Council Extends Sanctions on South Sudan, Adopting Resolution 2633 (2022) by 10 Votes in Favour, with 5 Abstentions,” United Nations, 26 May 2022; “South Sudan slams UN over renewed arms embargo, sanctions,” The East African, 28 May 2022)
Senegal: Health minister fired after eleven babies die in hospital fire
On 27 May, BBC reported that health minister Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr had been fired after eleven newborn infants were killed in a fire at a hospital in Tivaouane city. The city mayor said a short circuit led to the fire. The news report quoted AFP which referred to local media reports saying the hospital was newly-inaugurated. Meanwhile, president Macky Sall declared a three-day mourning period in the country. The incident comes a year after four infants were killed in a hospital fire in 2021 in Linguere town, due to an electric fault. (Nicolas Négoce, “Senegal hospital fire: Eleven newborn babies die in Tivaouane,” BBC, 27 May 2022)