October 04, 2026 05:17 am (IST)
Follow us:
UN envoy in South Sudan to step down after three years
New York, May 31 (IBNS): The top United Nations envoy in South Sudan announced on Friday that she is stepping down from her post in July after leading the world body's efforts in the country for nearly three years.
Hilde F. Johnson, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), made the announcement in the capital, Juba, following a meeting with President Salva Kiir.
“I informed the President that I have come to the end of my term and I will be departing South Sudan. It has been a real honour to serve and I will be still here for a few weeks but South Sudan has a strong place in my heart and will continue to have that.”
Johnson has been at the helm of UNMISS since the mission was established in July 2011, when the country gained its independence from Sudan.
On Tuesday, the Security Council extended UNMISS until 30 November of this year, and revised its mandate to give priority to the task of protecting civilians and to address the security, humanitarian and political crisis that has gripped the nation for the past six months.
Political infighting between President Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar turned into a full-fledged conflict in mid-December that has uprooted over one million people, including 75,000 and 80,000 civilians who have sought safety at UNMISS bases around the country for months since the violence began.
(Hilde F. Johnson, Special Representative and head of the UN Mission in South Sudan, meets with President Salva Kiir. Photo: UNIFEED video still)
Support Our Journalism
We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism
IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.
Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Latest Headlines
UAE calls Flydubai cockpit attack a ‘terrorist act’; Omani pilot tried to take control
Sat, Oct 03 2026
flydubai cockpit attack: Deleted posts expose Omani co-pilot’s views on women, alleged extremist past
Sat, Oct 03 2026
flydubai cockpit horror: Omani co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami attacked Captain Smit Machchhar with crash axe, tried to seize control
Sat, Oct 03 2026
flydubai temporarily suspends all Israel flights after co-pilot’s alleged cockpit attack, crash attempt
Sat, Oct 03 2026
Grounded in Oman over ‘radical views’, then hired by flydubai: What we know about Omani pilot Hamam al-Hammami
Sat, Oct 03 2026
Flydubai co-pilot who stabbed Smit Machchhar identified, was banned from flying by Oman due to suspected extremism: Report
Sat, Oct 03 2026
UK-Iranian national arrested over RAF Fairford terror plot probe
Fri, Oct 02 2026