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South Sudan spends millions on Israel security devices

December 5, 2017 at 12:06 pm

South Sudanese President Silva Kiir [Tîto Dáu Lúiz‎/Facebook]

South Sudan’s authorities have spent millions of dollars to purchase Israeli surveillance drones and security cameras, official sources reported yesterday.

Speaking at the launch event held at a drone control centre in Israel, the South Sudanese President Silva Kiir said: “Two drones and 11 cameras will be deployed by Israeli company Global Group.”

“Criminals can now be traced and they cannot get away with crime.”

“All the planes at the airport will be safe. Everybody can be screened wherever he or she is going,” Kiir noted.

An official from Israel’s Ministry of the Interior refused to divulge the value of the deal but hinted it was worth “millions of dollars”. He warned that sustaining the project may be a challenge for South Sudan’s government.

Read: Israeli activists call for investigation into Israel providing South Sudan with weapons

“Our challenge is money… how to manage or sustain this system. As you know the country is in crisis,” he said.

An Israeli company will manage the equipment until it has trained 150 South Sudanese police officers to take over operations.

Since the beginning of the civil war in December 2013, South Sudan’s oil exports have collapsed. Tens of thousands have been killed and million displaced, while inflation has rocketed adding to the population’s money woes.

According to official data, the number of South Sudanese citizens in need of food aid is expected to reach 4.8 million during the period from October to December 2017.