A woman and two children were killed in an ambush allegedly carried out by gunmen at Apiridongo area of Duk County in South Sudan’s Jonglei State on Tuesday, a government official said.

Jonglei’s Information Minister Jacob Akech Dengdit told Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday that the ambush on a commercial vehicle took place between Duk Padiet and Duk Panyang counties.

The government official urged local youths to remain calm, saying more organized forces will be deployed in the area to improve the security situation.

Akech, who is also the state government spokesman, pointed out that the Jonglei government will engage its counterpart in neighboring Boma to ensure peaceful coexistence between the two communities.