Appointed commander of the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLAIO) Special Division in December 2014. His forces have been engaged in attacks against civilians. In February 2014, forces under his command attacked United Nations camps, hospitals, churches, and schools, engaging in widespread rape, torture, and the destruction of property, in an attempt to flush out civilians, soldiers, and policemen allied with the government.
James Koang Chuol (Koang) was listed on 1 July 2015 pursuant to paragraphs 6, 7(a), 7(d) and 8 of resolution 2206 (2015) as, ‘responsible for or complicit in, or having engaged in, directly or indirectly, actions or policies that threaten the peace, security or stability of South Sudan’; ‘actions or policies that have the purpose or effect of expanding or extending the conflict in South Sudan or obstructing reconciliation or peace talks or processes, including breaches of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement’; ‘targeting of civilians, including women and children, through the commission of acts of violence (including killing, maiming, torture, or rape or other sexual violence), abduction, enforced disappearance, forced displacement, or attacks on schools, hospitals, religious sites, or locations where civilians are seeking refuge, or through conduct that would constitute a serious abuse or violation of human rights or a violation of international humanitarian law’; and as a leader ‘of any entity, including any South Sudanese government, opposition, militia, or other group, that has, or whose members have, engaged in any of the activities described in paragraphs 6 and 7’.
James Koang Chuol (Koang) has threatened the peace, security, or stability of South Sudan in his position as a leader of anti-government forces in Unity State, South Sudan, whose members targeted civilians, including women and children, with killing, sexual violence, and committed attacks on schools, hospitals, religious sites, and locations where civilians were seeking refuge.
Koang defected from his position as the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) Fourth Division commander in December 2013. Taking orders from Koang, defecting soldiers executed as many as 260 of their on-base counterparts before targeting and killing civilians in the state capital of Bentiu.
Koang was appointed commander of the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) Special Division in December 2014. In his new position, Koang led attacks on government forces in Upper Nile State's Renk and Maban counties in January 2015 that were cited by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development Monitoring and Verification Mechanism as violations of the CoHA.
In February 2014, after Koang was given command of anti-government forces in Unity State, those forces attacked United Nations camps, hospitals, churches, and schools, engaging in widespread rape, torture, and the destruction of property, in an attempt to flush out civilians, soldiers, and policemen allied with the government. On April 14-15, 2014, Koang's forces captured Bentiu after heavy fighting and engaged in attacks against civilians. In separate incidents at a Bentiu mosque, church, and abandoned food compound, forces separated civilians who were taking shelter by their ethnicity and nationality before engaging in targeted killings, leaving at least 200 dead and 400 wounded. In mid-September 2014, Koang reportedly ordered his forces to target Dinka civilians during an attack in Upper Nile State.
Other Information
(Date of UN designation: 2015-07-01)
Date of listing
2017-03-09
Program information
Authority
EU
Program
Restrictive measures in view of the situation in South Sudan
Regime
UN, EU country specific
Target State
South Sudan
Measures
Asset freeze and prohibition to make funds available, Restrictions on admission
Sanctions Portfolio
- All assets of the listed persons and entities should be frozen. It is also prohibited to make any funds or assets directly or indirectly available to them.
- Member States shall enforce travel restrictions on persons listed in Annex I and II of Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/740.
Official Information
The Council of the EU first adopted restrictive measures in relation to South Sudan on 10 July 2014, after the outbreak of a destructive conflict between the Government of South Sudan and opposition forces in December 2013. Alarmed by the seriousness of the situation, the Council of the EU adopted restrictive measures in relation to persons who obstruct the political process in South Sudan or are responsible for serious human rights violations.
In view of the conflict, on 3 March 2015 the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2206 (2015). In order to support the search for an inclusive and sustainable peace in South Sudan, restrictive measures were imposed against those who threaten the peace, security or stability of South Sudan.
