TUESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2013

Mass grave discovered in South Sudan's Unity State

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir. The United Nations on Tuesday said a mass grave had been discovered in Bentiu, the capital of South Sudan's oil-rich Unity State. Photo/File 

The United Nations on Tuesday said a mass grave had been discovered in Bentiu, the capital of South Sudan's oil-rich Unity State, following a surge of violence in the world's youngest nation.

"We have discovered a mass grave in Bentiu, in Unity State, and there are reportedly at least two other mass graves in Juba," UN rights chief Navi Pillay said in a statement.

The European Union has expressed concern over the ongoing conflict in the state of South Sudan.

"I am extremely concerned that South Sudan risks spiralling into a disaster for both its own people and the region. Such a situation can, and must, be avoided," the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the Commission, said in a statement.