The South Sudanese army has confirmed that Sudanese warplanes bombed Pariang County in Unity State on Monday, without providing an explanation as to why.
Radio Tamazuj reported Monday the Sudanese air force sent warplanes into Pariang County of Unity State in South Sudan dropping bombs on unknown targets in the Panyang area.
Colonel Philip Aguer, spokesman of the South Sudanese national army, has since confirmed to Radio Tamazuj the bombings carried out on Monday, saying the attacks in Pariang County were a clear violation of the borders of South Sudan.
“Yes, Sudanese Antonov airplanes bombed on territory of South Sudan,” he said, adding, “We still have no idea the motivations of the Sudanese army.”
He denied having specific knowledge as to the incident or the impact of the attacks.
Residents who spoke to Radio Tamazuj in Pariang town on Tuesday said the bombs fell fall from where they lived, explaining there was widespread fear after the bombing but afterwards the situation returned to normal.
Chat Malual Makwech said the situation in the county is good. “There’s no problem,” he said. He pointed out many people who fled the area since December returned to the county and government employees have gone back to work.
Ngor Kuol, another citizen, said “Really there’s no problem, since people returned to the town there’s no problem,” emphasizing people were returning to their homes after earlier displacement.
A third resident claimed also the Bentiu-Pariang road was secure, though there were few public buses moving along the road, only government vehicles and some commercial vehicles. It costs a passenger 80 pounds to reach to Bentiu, he said.
He emphasized also that coexistence was good between the host community of the county and the Nuba refugees staying in the county.
It is not clear whom the Sudanese warplanes were targeting, though it is known that Sudanese rebel groups JEM and SPLA-N have both had a presence in the county. Also in December there was fighting between SPLA troops and defectors, but these troops were reported to have passed south into neighboring counties.
File photo