A gunfight between armed youth from the Monytiak and Bhoor sections of the Rup Community in Malek Payam of Lakes State’s Rumbek Central County at Aluaal-adol cattle camp on Tuesday resulted in the death of three people and two others sustaining gunshot wounds.
The police spokesperson in Lakes State, Major Elijah Mabor Makuac, confirmed the clashes but said investigations are underway to establish what triggered it.
“The fighting led to the killing of three people and two people, one from either side, got gunshot injuries. Authorities intervened, calm was restored and the security situation is now calm. We are still investigating the cause of the fighting and working to identify the suspects to arrest them,” he explained. “There was no clear information about the issue but according to the first report we received, the fighting erupted when youth from Bhoor were migrating from Awai and when they reached Alual-adol, fighting took place. However, we do not know the exact cause of the problem or whether it is caused by previous grievances or another reason.”
For her part, Angelina Adhel Malual, a civil society activist in Lakes State, said there has been relative peace in the area and appealed to armed elements not to cause insecurity.
“Rumbek has been a peaceful community. A few years ago, we had a lot of insecurity characterized by road ambushes, people attacking each other, and cattle raiding. We even used to urinate inside the house at night due to fear and people could not travel to other counties.” She stated. “We do not want to go back to the same situation of insecurity because now the state is peaceful and you can move anywhere during the day or night and even visit other communities.”
Adhel added: “I urge the members of the Malek Community at home and in diaspora, let us talk to our people because we are one people and share common things like grazing land and water sources.”
The medical director at Rumbek State Hospital, Dr. Terran Madit Terran, confirmed that the three people who were injured in the fighting sustained gunshot wounds on the chest, legs, and arms and have been admitted to the facility and are responding well to treatment.