South Sudan ‘back to war’, says VP Riek Machar’s spokesman

South Sudan is “back to war”, a spokesman for the vice-president has told the BBC, as rival factions clash and hundreds have been reported killed.

Forces loyal to Vice-President Riek Machar say government troops attacked their positions in the capital, Juba.

But Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth said the reports of war were “dishonest”.

The UN mission said hundreds had sought shelter in its compounds, and called for leaders to restrain their troops.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned what he called the “senseless violence“. The UN Security Council is holding an emergency session to discuss South Sudan.

‘Situation under control’

Col William Gatjiath, Mr Machar’s military spokesman, told the BBC President Salva Kiir “isn’t serious” about a peace agreement.

He said “hundreds” of Mr Machar’s troops had died on Sunday, and that troops loyal to Mr Machar were advancing on Juba from different directions.

Mr Lueth said government troops responded when Mr Machar’s forces attacked a checkpoint, adding that those forces had now been scattered. “The situation is normal and it is under full control,” he added.

The clashes follow days of fighting in the world’s newest country between supporters of Mr Kiir and Mr Machar.

At least 150 people were killed in fighting on Friday, before calm was restored on Saturday. Local radio station Radio Tamazuj reported on Sunday that the death toll from those clashes may be as high as 271.

The violence has raised fears of renewed instability, with a 2015 peace deal failing to quell unrest.

Heavy gunfire was reported on Sunday near a military barracks occupied by troops loyal to Mr Machar.

Friday’s exchanges were apparently sparked by a shootout between Mr Kiir’s and Mr Machar’s bodyguards. The two men met at the presidential palace on Friday, and issued a call for calm.

How did we get here?

July 2011 – South Sudan becomes an independent country, after more than 20 years of guerrilla warfare, which claimed the lives of at least 1.5 million people and displaced more than four million.

December 2013 – Civil war breaks out after President Salva Kiir sacks the cabinet and accuses Vice-President Riek Machar of planning a coup. The war is fought broadly between the country’s biggest ethnic groups – the Dinka, led by Mr Kiir, and the Nuer, under Mr Machar.

More than 2.2 million people are displaced by the fighting. Famine puts the lives of thousands at risk. Tens of thousands of people are reported killed, and Mr Machar flees the country.

August 2015 – President Kiir signs a peace deal with rebels after a threat of sanctions from the UN.

April 2016 – Mr Machar returns to South Sudan to take up his job as first vice president in a new unity government led by President Kiir. The move marks “the end of the war and the return of peace and stability to South Sudan”, Mr Kiir says. BBC