S.Sudan vice-president allies arrested in threat to peace deal

AFP | Juba, South Sudan
Email : editor@newsofbahrain.com

South Sudan forces have arrested the oil minister and deputy head of the army, both allies of First Vice-President Riek Machar, as fears grew on Wednesday for the country's fragile peace agreement.

South Sudan, the world's youngest country, ended a five-year civil war in 2018 with a power-sharing agreement between bitter rivals, President Salva Kiir and his deputy, Machar.

Growing tensions have threatened to undo their unity government, particularly violent clashes in the northeastern Upper Nile State, where the government says there are ongoing clashes between the army and rebels backed by Machar's forces.

Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth told reporters that a government garrison in the region was overrun by the rebels early Tuesday and that fighting was ongoing.

He accused Machar's movement, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), of being in league with the so-called White Army, a loose band of armed youths in the region from the same ethnic Nuer community as the vice-president.

Since the attack, two close allies of Machar, deputy army chief General Gabriel Duop Lam and Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol, have been arrested, according to spokespersons.

Machar's residence in the capital Juba was also surrounded by army forces on Tuesday although he was present in his office the following day, his spokesman said.

- 'Gravely concerned' -

The civil war between Kiir and Machar began in 2013 just two years after the country gained independence from Sudan and left some 400,000 people dead.

They represent the two largest ethnic groups, Dinka and Nuer, respectively.

Many steps of the peace agreement remain unfulfilled, including writing a constitution, holding elections and unifying their armed forces -- while the country remains mired in poverty despite significant oil deposits.

Machar's spokesperson said the general's arrest on Tuesday "violates" the peace deal and called for an intervention by international partners.

"This act puts the entire agreement at risk," he said.

"We take this opportunity to call upon the guarantors of the Agreement and partners to intervene in order to avoid a return to full-scale violence."

The United Nations has warned of increasing clashes in Upper Nile State involving the use of "heavy weaponry" and multiple deaths.

On Wednesday, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, a bloc of eight regional countries, said the clashes "threaten to undermine the hard-won gains achieved in the (peace agreement) and exacerbate the already dire humanitarian situation in the region."

This follows several political moves by Kiir, described by analysts as attempts to consolidate his position and sideline Machar.

Last month, Kiir fired two of the five vice-presidents in his unity government without consulting other stakeholders, and removed the governor of Western Equatoria State, a member of Machar's movement.

Abraham Kuol Nyuon, associate professor for political science at the University of Juba, said the country could be on the brink of renewed war.

"Mostly our leaders are aggressive to each other... without embracing dialogue... without thinking about the people of South Sudan... (and) that could take this country back to conflict," he told AFP.