The National Salvation Front (NAS) rebels have denied involvement in the ambush on a bus along the Juba-Nimule highway, where at least one Ugandan national was killed and eight others were wounded.
The attack occurred on Tuesday when gunmen opened fire on a Bebeto Coach bus bound for Uganda.
The South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) Spokesperson, Maj Gen Lul Ruai Koang, blamed the attack on the NAS rebels led by Gen Thomas Cirillo.
However, NAS leadership refuted the claims in a press statement on Wednesday.
“NAS strongly refutes the cheap and baseless lies of SSPDF Spokesperson of being responsible for the bus attack. This statement is false and must be treated with the contempt it deserves,” said, NAS Spokesperson Suba Samuel Manase.
Manase further criticized SSPDF for failing to provide security on the Juba-Nimule road and across South Sudan, attributing it to the government’s inability to pay soldiers for nearly 21 months.
“The false allegations against NAS are a desperate attempt by the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (R-TGoNU) to divert attention from the pressing issues surrounding its legitimacy crisis,” he added.
Manase claimed that the government was attempting to paint NAS as a regional threat to garner external sympathy.
The Juba-Nimule highway is a crucial route connecting South Sudan to Uganda and Kenya, for the supply of goods to Juba. This incident marks the first reported armed attack on the highway this year.