The commissioner of Fashoda County in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State says the county is witnessing runaway insecurity caused by violent conflict among armed groups in remote villages.
Joseph Aban told Radio Tamazuj that some armed groups are allegedly from Jonglei State while others are forces within the SPLA-IO Kitgwang faction.
“This group has been carrying out attacks since October on the villages of Fashoda county. Two days ago, they launched an attack on one of the remote villages, and the death toll has not been determined due to the tense security situation. But we will reveal the number if the security situation stabilizes,” he said.
Commissioner Aban claimed that there is an alliance between the armed groups from Jonglei and Kitgwang to launch an attack on the county’s villages.
“Their goal was to loot cows in the beginning, but now their goal is unknown as they launch attacks on villages and kill children, women, and the elderly,” he noted.
Last October, dozens of civilians were killed in an attack on a village in Fashoda County.
Last week, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan said it was deeply concerned about reports of violence in Fashoda between armed youths from Jonglei and Upper Nile.
The mission said that the fighting affected the lives of many civilians and led to the displacement of citizens to Malakal and Kadok, where the situation remains tense and volatile. It called on the authorities and community leaders of the two areas to use their influence to stop the bloodshed.