Hommam Al Nassim 
The Nigerian military has sent 157 troops to South Sudan to participate with United Nations peacekeepers (UNISFA) in the disputed Abyei region.
Major General Boniface Singin, Nigerian Army Chief of Operations, said the dispatched unit of 142 soldiers and 15 officers would contribute effectively to peace efforts in South Sudan.
Nigeria’s participation is the first after an 11-year absence, after withdrawing from UN peacekeeping operations in 2013 to focus on “counter-terrorism” inside the country.
The Abyei region, where Nigerian troops will be deployed, is witnessing ongoing tensions between Misseriya Arabs in the north and African Dinka tribes in the south, an oil-rich region on the border between Sudan and South Sudan.
Established by a UN Security Council resolution in 2011, UNISFA has a military force of 4,200 military personnel and 50 police personnel and aims to enhance security and stability in the Abyei area.
The destruction of the oil sector threatens the economy and stability in Sudan