Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06KHARTOUM1191
2006-05-22 05:31:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Khartoum
Cable title:  

MAY 19 FIREWORKS IN JUBA

Tags:  PINS ASEC CACS PGOV SU 
pdf how-to read a cable
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


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