Operation Trenton


Operation Trenton was the contribution of the United Kingdom in support of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. As one of the UK's largest operational deployments at the time, the task force comprised over 300 military personnel. The operation successfully ended in January 2020.

Background

In 2011, South Sudan gained independence from Sudan following 25 years of civil war. The United Nations Security Council announced that the situation represented a threat to international peace and security and established the United Nations Mission in South Sudan to bring about peace and conditions for development. The conflict escalated in 2013 due to clashes between the government and opposition forces and, as a result, 60% of the population experienced food insecurity, with 2.2 million out of its 13 million population becoming refugees and 1.9 million becoming internally displaced. In July 2019, there were 182,050 civilians in the six UN Protection of Civilian sites in South Sudan.

Deployment

The deployment began in 2017 with a task force operating in two U.N. locations; Malakal and Bentiu. The task force comprised 25 units, totaling up to 378 service personnel across all three services.
The units involved included:
Operation Trenton drew to a close in January 2020, four years after it first began. It had resulted in the construction of two hospitals, as well as upgrades to schools, prisons, roads and bridges. Minister for the Armed Forces Anne-Marie Trevelyan praised the "professionalism and skill" of British service personnel, adding "Everyone I’ve met here, from politicians to UN officials have only the highest praise for the work of our armed forces in South Sudan". 160 members of 39 Engineer Regiment were awarded service medals.