At least five people have been killed and seven others injured in an attack by armed assailants near the outskirts of Uror County headquarters in Jonglei State, authorities said.
The assault, which occurred on Friday afternoon, also resulted in the theft of 7,000 head of cattle.
Uror County Commissioner James Gatkhor Gatluak told Radio Tamazuj that some of the injured were in critical condition and were receiving medical treatment at a local facility. He accused armed youth from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA) of carrying out the attack.
“On the afternoon of 7th March, around 2 pm, Murle youth launched a heavy attack on a cattle camp called Kar near Yuai town,” he said. “In the fighting, we lost five youth and seven were injured. All 7,000 cattle in the village were raided.”
The commissioner condemned the attack and said local youth were pursuing the assailants to recover the stolen cattle. He also urged residents to relocate from hotspot areas as a safety measure.
A local youth leader, Gatluak Bol, also denounced the attack and called for an investigation. “As youth, we condemn the attack. Earlier in the week, we were also attacked, resulting in the death of three people and the injury of five others,” he said.
Efforts to reach Peter Ajany Kaimoi, the acting GPAA information minister, for comment were unsuccessful.
Civil society activist Bol Deng Bol, executive director of INTREPID South Sudan, expressed concern over the renewed inter-communal violence in Greater Jonglei. He called for immediate intervention to prevent further escalation.
“This is a setback to the peace we have been pushing for. It is deeply disappointing,” he said. “There is a need for strong condemnation of this attack and strict follow-up on resolutions from past dialogues to avoid a return to the vicious cycle of inter-communal violence.”