The authorities in Warrap State have said that armed youth in the restive Rualbet Payam of Tonj North County on Wednesday surrendered 359 firearms to the high-level security committee.
Agok Ayaar, the Warrap State acting information minister who doubles as minister of youth, culture, and sports, told Radio Tamazuj Thursday that guns were voluntarily handed over to a committee whose members include the national chiefs of the army, national security, and the police.
“The telephone network in the area is challenging but the security committee spent about three weeks there and this helped calm the security situation,” he said. “359 Kalashnikov AK-47 rifles were surrendered voluntarily by youth.”
“The process is ongoing and the presence of the Chief of Defence Forces and the Director General of National Security improved the security situation because the youth surrender the guns to local chiefs who in turn give them to the committee,” he added.
According to Minister Ayaar, the security committee distributed 500 bags of sorghum to internally displaced persons in the area, and another team led by the national minister of humanitarian affairs and the World Food Program arrived in Kuajok on Thursday to assess the food situation in the Rualbet area.
Meanwhile, Malek Agei, an SPLM state parliamentarian confirmed that the youth have been willingly handing over illegal firearms in Tonj North County.
“The area is now calm as reported by locals who come to Warrap town. The presence of the chiefs of the army and national security really calmed the situation and the youth have changed their minds and they are voluntarily handing in their guns,” he said.