VZCZCXRO2234
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1191/01 1420531
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 220531Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2885
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001191 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PINS ASEC CACS PGOV SU
SUBJECT: MAY 19 FIREWORKS IN JUBA 
 
 
¶1. Summary.  At approximately 1500 hrs local on May 19, 
an ammunition dump at the main Sudanese Armed Forces 
base, situated on the outskirts of Juba, caught fire and 
detonated much of the ordnance contained in the bunker. 
A brief general panic ensued, with both SAF and SPLA 
troops going on alert.  Shells and rockets detonated by 
the blaze fell on parts of Juba, causing light 
casualties.  The explosions ceased after an hour and the 
city had returned to normal by dusk.  The Consulate 
General compound was not affected, and no American 
citizens were injured.  End summary. 
 
------------ 
Pyrotechnics 
------------ 
 
¶2.  At approximately 1500 hrs local a number of window- 
rattling explosions punctuated the afternoon and a column 
of white smoke rose above the main SAF base in Juba. 
Brief pandemonium ensued, with civilians pouring out of 
markets and school children well versed in years of 
warfare lying/huddling in the lee of buildings.  Juba 
radio immediately to announce that an ammunition dump at 
the main SAF base had caught fire and exploded. 
 
¶3.  Consul General (CG) Juba instructed the staff to 
stand fast and open the protective bunker in the camp. 
An hour later, when the primary and secondary explosions 
stopped, CG and a Defense Liaison Office (DLO) 
representative drove out of town to the site of the new 
consular compound, at the foot of Jebel Kudjur, which 
provided a panorama of the town.  Armed SAF soldiers 
lined the perimeter of a small secondary base on route 
and armed SPLA troops were visible along the way.  From 
Jebel Kudjur, CG could see a column of smoke rising from 
a site at the back of the base, well removed from the 
main barracks and headquarters complex. 
 
----------- 
The Effects 
----------- 
 
¶4.  The town of Juba was not seriously damaged by the 
blasts.  Some unfused ordnance landed on the town, but 
most did not detonate.  Members of Parliament (MPs), who 
sheltered on the ground floor of the Assembly building, 
later claimed that one round went off nearby, adjacent to 
the Presidency; this has not yet been confirmed.  The 
UNMIS logistics head said that he witnessed two Kaytusha 
rockets streak over the airport, and a shell landed in 
the UNMIS Russian aviation camp at the end of the runway, 
slicing off the foot of a Russian soldier before boring 
unexploded into the ground.  The trajectory of this 
ordnance would have carried it more or less over the CG 
compound and the town.  Two SAF soldiers are confirmed 
dead at the base; a Radio Juba reporter claimed that he 
had witnessed other bodies.  This has not been confirmed. 
No Amcits were injured in the incident. 
 
¶5.  SAF troops returned to their barracks by dusk, and 
SPLA forces were gradually returning to their bases at 
the same time. UNMIS demining teams have cordoned off 
sites where unexploded ordnance (UXO) is known to have 
impacted prior to removing/detonating this detritus.  No 
civilian casualties have been reported, although several 
small children who fled during the initial panic have not 
yet been reunited with their families.  Truckloads of 
SPLA soldiers careening about the town at breakneck speed 
posed one of the gravest risks to public welfare. 
 
¶6.  The rumor mill immediately began grinding at full 
capacity.  Always prepared to assume the worst about 
their northern partners, a group of MPs told the CG that 
the SAF had intentionally torched the camp prior to their 
departure rather than relinquish it intact to the GoSS, 
part of a scorched earth withdrawal policy throughout the 
South.  CG assured them that the base remained intact, 
although there was probably some residual damage. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶7.  This incident was not as serious as the January 2005 
explosion of a larger SAF dump, which led to several 
hours of primary and secondary explosions that rained 
high explosives on Juba, concomitant with higher 
casualties and damage to buildings, including ministries 
situated near the CG compound.  In days following that 
event, UXOs killed several curious children.  UNMIS plans 
to launch an immediate campaign to sensitize the 
population to this danger and will reserve a demining 
team to remove any UXO discovered in or around Juba.  The 
 
KHARTOUM 00001191  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
reaction of armed forces on both sides was - if not 
always calm - acceptable.  End comment. 
 
HUME