JUBA, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an East African bloc, on Thursday expressed disappointment over continuing violation of a truce signed by South Sudan's warring factions in 2018.
Ismail Wais, IGAD special envoy to South Sudan, said the people of South Sudan are eager to reconstruct their lives after being devastated by more than five years of conflict, adding that further violation of the pact is unacceptable.
"IGAD is dismayed at the reports of recurring violations of the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities, Protection of Civilians and Humanitarian Access," Wais said in a statement.
The envoy said the people of South Sudan are tired of war and violence and called on the warring parties to ensure that hostilities are ended.
"The ceasefire agreement has been signed by all of the warring parties and it is the responsibility of all to respect the call of the people for peace," Wais said.
"We call upon all the parties to adhere to the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities, Protection of Civilians and Humanitarian Access," Wais added.
The statement came barely a day after the peace monitoring body expressed concerns over military build-up in the southern region of Yei River State.
The Revitalized Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) said it has received credible reports of military deployment to Yei by both the government and rebels of the National Salvation Front (NSF), under the command of Thomas Cirillo.
South Sudan descended into civil war in July 2013 and the conflict has created one of the fastest growing refugee crises in the world.
A peace agreement signed in 2015 to end the violence was again violated in July 2016 when the rival factions resumed fighting in the capital Juba, forcing Riek Machar to flee into exile.
The UN estimates that about 4 million South Sudanese have been displaced internally and externally.
South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, his former deputy and arch rival Riek Machar and several opposition groups signed a power-sharing deal in Ethiopia in September 2018.
Compared to the shattered 2015 agreement, the new deal appears to be holding as fighting has slightly reduced across the young nation.
