UN condemns bombing in South Sudan

The U.N.'s top human rights official on Friday said she was outraged by Sudan's "indiscriminate" aerial bombing of South Sudan and warned that attacks that hurt civilians could be considered international crimes. Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, condemned the attacks by Khartoum during a visit this week to newly-independent South Sudan. “I am saddened and outraged to learn that such attacks, which place civilians at great risk and have already killed and injured some and have caused many thousands of others to flee, have been taking place in recent days,” she said.

Last month, Sudan and South Sudan fought skirmishes on their disputed border, prompting a May 2 warning from the U.N. Security Council to both sides that if they did not settle their differences peacefully they could face sanctions.

Despite the continuing alleged bombings, South Sudan's
government has said it is ready to restart negotiations at "any time" with its neighbour Sudan to try to resolve their outstanding oil, security and frontier disputes. But Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has said there can be no such talks unless the sides settle security issues.

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