An airstrike struck the town of Nasir in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State late on Sunday, causing civilian casualties and fires, local officials and witnesses said, amid escalating tensions between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and rival groups aligned with First Vice President Riek Machar.
Nasir County Commissioner Gatluak Lew Thiep told Radio Tamazuj that a military aircraft dropped multiple bombs on the town’s airstrip and surrounding areas at around 11:40 pm. He said the attack triggered significant fires, civilian casualties, and property damage, though the exact toll remained unverified.
“There are people who have died and [been] injured, but we are yet to confirm the numbers,” Gatluak said, adding that victims were taken to hospitals.
He accused the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF), the national army, of carrying out the strike in retaliation for recent clashes in Nasir.
Gatluak, an ally of Machar, also claimed Longechuk County in Upper Nile State was also bombed on Sunday, though details were not immediately available.
A video shared on social media and reviewed by Radio Tamazuj showed flames engulfing houses and trees in Nasir. Witnesses reported fires, while local armed youth commander Tet Chuol Gatkuoth confirmed the bombing but said damage assessments were pending.
“I can confirm that the SSPDF has just bombed our areas in Nasir, but we have yet to assess the damage caused by the airstrike,” Ter said.
SSPDF Spokesperson Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang could not immediately be reached for comment.
The airstrike follows days of heightened hostilities. On Friday, Defence Minister Gen. Chol Thon Balok vowed to retake Nasir during a funeral for an SSPDF commander killed in a failed U.N. evacuation attempt in the town on March 7.
Nasir, a strategic border hub with Ethiopia, was seized on March 4 by the White Army, a militia Kiir’s faction alleges is linked to Machar. The attack has heightened fears of renewed conflict between Kiir and Machar, whose forces fought a civil war from 2013 to 2018 that killed hundreds of thousands. A fragile unity government formed under a 2018 peace deal has been strained by recent violence.
Kiir’s administration has also arrested several of Machar’s associates in the capital Juba, further destabilizing the power-sharing agreement. Nasir has been a flashpoint since the White Army captured an SSPDF base there on March 4.