US sanctions both sides in South Sudan conflict

The Treasury Department says the U.S. is issuing sanctions against individuals on both sides of the deadly conflict in South Sudan.

Treasury announced the sanctions that freeze assets under U.S. jurisdiction and bans them from movement out of the United States.

South Sudan has been rocked by violence since December, when President Salva Kiir accused former Vice President Riek Machar of staging a coup. The two are expected to meet later this week for face-to-face talks.

Secretary of State John Kerry just returned from South Sudan where he tried to foster peace talks and threatened sanctions as a way to end fighting in the world's newest nation. Thousands of people have died in the violence and more than 1.3 million people have fled their homes.