Kenya agrees to rejoin South Sudan UN force

Kenya has agreed to take part in a UN regional force for South Sudan, the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday, three months after Nairobi angrily withdrew its troops from the country.
Kenya pulled its peacekeepers from South Sudan and announced it would not contribute to the planned regional force after Guterres’ predecessor, Ban Ki-moon, fired the Kenyan commander of the peacekeeping force.
The commander was sacked following a report that showed the UN peacekeepers failed to protect civilians during heavy fighting in Juba in July.
Guterres told reporters that he had “reached full agreement with Kenya in order for Kenya to participate in the regional protection force” to be deployed in Juba.
The UN Security Council decided in August to deploy the 4 000-strong regional force to bolster its peacekeeping mission, but the plan has been bogged down in delays and bureaucratic hurdles.