United Nations ( CNN ) -- The U.N. Security Council approved a resolution Monday to send 4,200 peacekeepers to Abyei , Sudan , as part of a recent agreement between Sudan and Southern Sudan . The resolution will establish , for six months , the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei ( UNISFA ) , comprising `` a maximum of 4,200 military personnel , 50 police personnel , and appropriate civilian support , '' the resolution states . It passed the council unanimously , 15-0 . In a statement released by the State Department , Secretary Hiliary Clinton commended the swift passage of the resolution . `` Abyei has been a source of regional tension for many years , '' the statement said . `` We urge the parties to reach an immediate cease-fire and to provide aid workers with the unfettered access required to deliver humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians affected by the conflict . '' A week ago , the Sudanese government and the Sudan People 's Liberation Movement signed an agreement to allow peacekeepers in Abyei , aimed at ending strife that has ravaged much of the country . The two sides agreed in principle on the need for a third party to monitor the ill-defined border between north and south before the scheduled July 9 independence for the south . The U.N. peacekeepers will `` monitor and verify the redeployment of any Sudan Armed Forces , Sudan People 's Liberation Army or its successor '' from the Abyei area , among other tasks , the Security Council resolution states .
New : Clinton commends the swift passage of the Abyei resolution . The resolutions establishes a six-month security force at U.N. , South Sudan . The two sides signed an agreement last week allowing peacekeepers . Sudan is to gain independence last week .