The South Sudan People’s Defense Force (SSPDF) said Wednesday that six victims of the Bebeto bus ambush were freed by the attackers.
Speaking to reporters at the Giada Military Barrack in Juba, SSPDF Spokesman Maj Gen Lul Ruai Koang, said the six were robbed of all their belongings.
“NAS [National Salvation Front] should not have attacked the bus in the first place because it was clearly a civilian public vehicle. I stated that NAS is not only a national problem but a regional problem since among the freed passengers were two Sudanese, two Ugandans, one Rwandan and one South Sudanese,” Koang said.
“From the abductees only, we have four from different countries so you can see the negative impact of the NAS attack,” he said.
He questioned why the NAS forces led by a professional army officer were targeting civilians, since it was not the first incident.
Koang called on the victims of the incident to seek justice at the international tribunal and the regional court.
“We tell those affected that you have every right to take legal measures against NAS. The bus that was set ablaze was a private property, owned by an independent entity that has the right to be sued and sue,” he said.
A Counselor for Political Affairs at the Uganda Embassy, Anthony Kabugudho, described the attack as unfortunate, stressing that NAS had become a regional problem.
“It is very unfortunate that a rebel outfit decides to target civilians. It is even more unfortunate that they have been given a chance to join the government which they are not listening to,” Kabugudho said.
“You cannot stop people from East Africa from coming to trade in South Sudan and you cannot stop South Sudanese moving around the region. We need to come together to fight some of these elements,” he added.
Kabugudho stressed that Uganda was committed to supporting South Sudan to resolve the problems on the Juba-Nimule road, which connects Juba to East Africa
A victim of the incident, Swaib Miya, narrated how two security officers boarded the bus immediately it left the Nesitu checkpoint.
“We rode for around 30 minutes then came under attack. The bus was shot at then one of the security officers alighted and he was shot and more fire was aimed at the buss,” he said
Miya said they were all ordered to disembark after about 30 minutes and their pockets and bags were ransacked. They were then ordered to move in a single line and those who became tired were shot.
“Only 12 out 20 captives were freed,” he added.
NAS spokesperson Suba Samuel Manase on Wednesday denied involvement of their forces in the bus attack.