VZCZCXRO8933
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1996 2351638
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 231638Z AUG 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4257
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 001996 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV MOPS KPKO UN SU
SUBJECT:  Southern Sudan:  Pangak Fighting Continues as UNMIS 
Attacked 
 
¶1. (U) An UNMIS monitoring team was attacked while patrolling the 
Nile during a routine joint monitoring mission on August 17.  The 
UNMIS boat patrol was fired upon by unknown forces an hour south of 
Malakal near New Pangak (Note:  this is not the town of Pangak, 
which is further upriver.  End note.)  A statement from the 
Ceasefire Joint Military Commission (CJMC) has called this a serious 
violation of both the ceasefire agreement and the CPA. 
 
¶2. (U) The UNMIS team was comprised of two patrol boats with 25 
Bangladeshi UN Force Protection Soldiers, three Indian UN observers, 
a Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) monitor, and a monitor from the Sudan 
People's Liberation Army (SPLA).  While the attack was largely by 
small arms fire, a rocket was reportedly fired at the patrol and 
narrowly missed.  Two UNMIS soldiers and the SAF monitor received 
minor gunshot wounds and have been hospitalized.  The UNMIS force 
withdrew as soon as the fighting began. 
 
¶3. (SBU) This oil-rich area has been the source of intermittent 
fighting over the past year between the SPLA and Gabriel Tang, a 
commander with the South Sudan Defense Force (SSDF).  Embassy 
officials spoke with Tang and SSDF leader Gordon Kong, who said that 
the current fighting began with an attack by the SPLA on August 12 
and has included some civilian casualties.  The SSDF claims that 
Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) President Salva Kiir declared 
war on them during his recent visit to the United States. 
 
¶4. (SBU) While investigations are ongoing, a high-ranking UNMIS 
official told the Acting Consul General in Juba that he also 
believes the SPLA is conducting an offensive against the SSDF 
between Malakal and Pangak.  While it is not yet confirmed, he 
believes the SPLA may be responsible for the attack on the UNMIS 
patrol, and that it could have been an effort to keep the UN out 
while they finish their operations.  All INGOs and UN agencies have 
pulled out of the area and the UNMIS has temporarily stopped patrols 
while they make plans for more robust policing.  The UNMIS official 
believes that this fighting will continue, and could eventually 
culminate in a large battle in New Pangak, home to a major SSDF 
base. 
 
HUME