An unidentified assailant lobbed a hand grenade at a hotel in Malakal town of Upper Nile State on Friday night, police said.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Saturday, State Police Commissioner Major General Chol Atem said an unidentified person came at night and threw a hand grenade at South Sudan Hotel, but no one was hurt.
“The attacker came from outside and threw a hand grenade at the hotel, but no one was hurt in the attack. The police are searching for the suspect,” the police official said.
The police commissioner said the motive behind the attack on the South Sudan Hotel remains unclear.
“There might be political or criminal motives behind the incident. We cannot determine now what could be the exact motive behind the attack, but we are searching for the attacker,” Chol said.
The police official, however, said the security personnel are in control of the situation in Malakal town. “The person who attacked the hotel was not arrested because the incident happened when there were no police around, but we have been arresting criminals. I want to assure the public that there is security in Malakal,” he said.
Most of the senior government officials in Malakal are accommodated at the South Sudan Hotel.
Malakal is the second-largest city in South Sudan. For years, it has been largely deserted as civilians fled the civil war that broke out in December 2013. But some are returning home to rebuild their lives after the formation of the unity government in February 2020.
Two weeks ago, a director general at the state ministry of physical infrastructure was killed by unknown attackers in Malakal. No arrests have been made so far.