A court in South Sudan’s capital, Juba has released 4 children on bail, while 8 others still remain in detention after they were suspected to have been involved in the killing of a young boy in Jubek State in February.

The 12 juveniles aged between 13 and 17 years old from Walawalang village were arrested and detained at Juba Main Prison in February for allegedly killing a fellow teenager from Tigri village in Jubek State during a fight between youths from the two villages in February. Teenagers from Tigri were accused of starting the fight on 6 February.

Godfrey Victor Bulla, the Executive Director of Justice and Human Right Observatory (JAHRO), a legal group offering free legal assistance told Radio Tamazuj that the 4 released on bail are aged below 15 and will attend court session from their homes.

“It was difficult for someone charged for murder to be released on bail from the detention and attain court session while outside detention but our lawyers from JAHRO managed to pursue the court through legal processes based on South Sudan Constitution,” he said.

He further revealed that one of those released is suffering from Hepatitis B and requires medical attention which he will now be able to access.