TOKYO: Japan will extend the dispatch period of Self-Defense Forces personnel deployed to the headquarters of the U.N. Mission in South Sudan, or UNMISS, by a year until May 31 next year, the government said Friday.

Based on the law on cooperation with U.N. peacekeeping operations, Japan has been dispatching SDF personnel to UNMISS since 2011.

Four SDF members are currently engaged in refueling and aircraft operations in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

The Japanese government also said it will send two more SDF personnel to the Multinational Force and Observers in the Sinai Peninsula, an organization tasked with monitoring the ceasefire between Egypt and Israel.

JIJI Press