Two traders were wounded on the outskirts of Uror County of Jonglei State when gunmen attacked three commercial vehicles on Wednesday, the county commissioner and police said.
“Those traders left the county headquarters, Yuai for Juba to get goods before the Uror-Bor road is cut off by the rains. After reaching Gadiang, some armed bandits attacked them and sprayed bullets on three vehicles, injuring two traders,” Tang Chatim, the commissioner of Uror County, told Radio Tamazuj on Friday.
Separately, Commissioner Chatim said: “Also, on the same day in the evening, Koat cattle camp in Pieri Payam was attacked. 79 cows were stolen but no one was killed. I appeal to my Pibor counterparts to recover the stolen animals.”
The county commissioner said the attacks are a clear violation of the grassroots peace initiative by armed bandits from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA).
Lt. Akec Mapiou, the Jonglei state police spokesperson, confirmed the incident and said they are unable to effectively provide protection to civilians because such attacks occur in remote areas.
For his part, David Ngero, David Ngero, the external secretary for the GPAA youth union, denied knowledge of the incident.
The greater Jonglei region has been plagued by recurring inter-communal violence involving the Dinka, Nuer, Murle and Anyuak communities. The violence is often accompanied by road ambushes, cattle raids, child abductions and other forms of revenge-inducing crimes.