S. Sudan govt troops, rebels blame each other for renewed fighting
Fresh fighting has broken out between government forces and rebels in the northern parts of South Sudan, barely two weeks after the warring parties inked a peace deal in neighboring Ethiopia.
Both government and the main rebel group, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) have blamed each other for the renewed fighting in parts of Liech and Wau states respectively.
Lul Roai Koang, the military spokesman said the opposition forces launched a series of road ambushes on government troops traveling in a convoy in Liech and Wau regions on Monday.
He said the attack in Wau killed at least one person and injured nine others following a rebel ambush on a government troops’ convoy.
“Since the signing of the peace agreement, the rebels have been moving out of their trenches to attack our forces in several parts of the country. Yesterday, they attacked a government convoy in Wau and killed one person and injured nine others whose identities are yet to be known.
They also attacked several of our logistics conveys in Liech on Monday,” Koang Told Xinhua by phone.
Lam Paul Gabriel, SPLA- IO Deputy Military Spokesman, on the other hand, alleged that government forces attacked two of their bases in the oil-rich Unity region on Monday.
“The regime’s forces launched another aggressive attack against the SPLA-IO positions of Mir Mir and Kuok in Liech State. The fight started this afternoon (Monday) at about 12:30PM and still ongoing, Gabriel aid.
South Sudan descended into civil war in late 2013, and the conflict has created one of the fastest growing refugee crises in the world.
The UN estimates that about 4 million South Sudanese have been displaced internally and externally.
A peace deal signed in August 2015 collapsed following renewed violence in the capital, Juba in July 2016.
South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, his former deputy and arch rival Riek Machar and several opposition groups early this month signed a new power-sharing deal aimed at ending the five-year old conflict.
Under the deal, Machar will be reinstated as Kiir’s deputy. – Xinhua
