A UN spokesman on Monday said that the world body is against the taxes on aid deliveries and peacekeeping operations imposed by South Sudan.

“Obviously, this goes against the agreements that we had with them (the South Sudanese authorities),” said Stephane Dujarric, chief spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Dujarric said despite the UN objection, the taxes remain.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator Anita Kiki Gbeho warned that the new taxes and charges imposed since February would add $339,000 U.S. monthly to the cost of food assistance and the operations of the UN Humanitarian Air Service.

Dujarric said that the funds would feed more than 16,300 people for one month.

He quoted Gbeho as saying that more than 60,000 people had already been impacted after the United Nations was forced to pause life-saving airdrops of food assistance as its fuel reserves were running low.

This number will increase to 145,000 by the end of May, should the measures remain in place, Gbeho was quoted as saying.

The taxes are also impacting the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan, known as UNMIS

The peacekeepers are reviewing the taxation impact on all of their activities, including patrols, the construction of police stations, schools, health care centres and educational support, said Dujarric.

He also told a regular briefing that UNMISS deployed additional troops and launched urgent integrated patrols to two hot spots following a sudden surge in intercommunal violence.

A group of armed youth from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area in the country’s east launched a significant attack on Friday on cattle keepers in Kauto Payam, in Eastern Equatoria just to the south,

This resulted in numerous deaths, the abduction of women and children, and theft of hundreds of cattle, he said.

In response, the peacekeepers sent patrols to the affected locations on both sides of the border between the administrative areas to assess the situation.

The patrols were also to help prevent further violence, and support efforts by state and local administrators to de-escalate tensions, said the spokesman.

“Meanwhile, in Tambura, in Western Equatoria, tensions between ethnic groups are rising,” Dujarric said.

“Fearing further violence, around 13,000 people have now sought sanctuary at a temporary UN peacekeeping base, while 4,000 others have arrived at another displacement camp,” Dujarric added.

He said over the weekend, UNMISS deployed an additional 76 peacekeepers to reinforce the base, protect displaced families, and boost patrols in the surrounding area.

“Our peacekeeping colleagues in South Sudan are also engaging with political parties and community leaders at the local and national levels to reduce tensions and restore calm,” the spokesman said.

(dpa/NAN)