By Denis Dumo JUBA (Reuters) - South Sudan rejected on Friday accusations from the U.N. that its soldiers had raped and killed civilians during and after ethnically-charged fighting last month in the capital Juba.
On Thursday, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said at least 217 cases of sexual violence in Juba had been documented during the period of July 8-25. He called on President Salva Kiir's government to prosecute the perpetrators and urged world powers in the U.N. Security Council to take "urgent action" to halt violence. Lul Ruai Koang, SPLA's military spokesperson, said the U.N., through the peacekeeping UNMISS force, should provide evidence that government soldiers were involved in the crimes, adding that they had not received any formal complaints. “Regarding reports of rape reported being committed by men in uniform whom the U.N. thought were from SPLA, why are they not coming forward with the evidence they have collected for us to act?," Koang told Reuters. “We need this evidence to be given to us that our men in uniform took part in the alleged crimes in order for us to bring charges against them," he added. Fighting broke out in July between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and his long-time rival Riek Machar, who has been replaced as his vice president. Machar returned to the capital Juba in April after a shaky peace deal, but left again after the new clashes broke out, killing at least 272 people. He said he would only return after an intervention force is deployed to separate his forces and those of Kiir.
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