A top government official in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state was reportedly assaulted inside the UN base in Malakal on Saturday.
Speaking to El Maugif newspaper, Upper Nile State Minister of Information and Communications Peter Hoth confirmed that the Culture, Youth, and Sports Minister Gatluak Liephoth Dieu was attacked in the UN base after Saturday prayers of the Adventist church in the camp.
Hoth labeled the attackers as “criminals.”
The Information Minister added that Gatluak sustained injuries to his shoulder, head, and back. He said Gatluak’s bodyguard and a woman who tried to disperse the fight were also hurt.
Hoth said the state government will form a committee to investigate the “criminals” inside the UN base.
The assaulted minister has previously been quoted as saying the rebels will never achieve any success by rebelling against an elected government.
The population in the Malakal base comprises a mix of ethnicities and political viewpoints.