At least six people were killed and three women together with unconfirmed number of children are thought to have been abducted by rebels in an area near Jalhak town in northern Upper Nile, a spokesperson for the Eastern Nile government said.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj yesterday, Jacob Lam Chan, Information Minister in Eastern Nile, accused opposition fighters led by Riek Machar of killing six people and abducting three women together with several children in an attack on a village in the east of Jalhak town.

The government official pointed out that the SPLA-IO soldiers took a tractor belonging to Renk farmers during the attack. Lam denied rebel claims that they captured Jalhak town.

For his part, William Gatjiath Deng, military spokesperson of the SPLA-IO, insisted that they are still controlling Jalhak town. He denied the allegation that their forces abducted three women and several children near Jalhak town.