Fighting erupted on Tuesday morning in Akobo town in South Sudan’s Jonglei State as government forces moved into the area and clashed with SPLA-IO forces, with both sides claiming control.
A video circulating on social media showed James Kueth Makuach, a former Akobo County commissioner who has been reinstalled by the government, speaking from the county headquarters and saying the town had “fallen peacefully” to the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF).
Kueth urged residents who fled their homes to return, warning that the deserted town could encourage looting. He also called on humanitarian organisations to resume operations, saying the area was now calm.
“SPLA-IO soldiers who are not carrying guns and are moving as civilians will not be asked,” he said in the video, while urging residents to avoid gunfire and keep away from SPLA-IO fighters.
Kueth said shops in the town had not been burned but that some had been looted by the SPLA-IO, and he encouraged traders to reopen their businesses. He also appealed to mobile phone operators to restore services in the area.
“I am happy to be back in the office and grateful for the support of the army and community leaders who agreed to rescue Akobo so that our area is not burned and destroyed,” he said, adding that church services and humanitarian assistance should resume next week.
Kueth, a member of the SPLM-IO, was dismissed as Akobo County commissioner on Jan. 16 by the group’s acting chairman, who replaced him with John Wiyual Lul. The move sparked tensions in Akobo after Kueth initially refused to step aside, though local leaders later mediated an agreement for him to leave office on Jan. 21.
It remains unclear whether Kueth now supports the SPLM-IO faction led by acting chairman Nathaniel Oyet or the government-aligned SPLM-IO faction led by peacebuilding minister Stephen Par Kuol.
Earlier on Tuesday, Kueth was also seen in a video at the SSPDF’s temporary forward base in Wech-Deng, a few kilometres west of Akobo, where he appeared to welcome advancing SSPDF troops heading toward the town.
Akobo, located near the border with Ethiopia, had been the last major stronghold of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO) in the Lou Nuer area after government forces recently recaptured bases in Nyirol and Uror counties.
However, the SPLA-IO disputed government claims of control.
John Wiyual Lul, the SPLA-IO-appointed commissioner, told Radio Tamazuj this evening that government troops briefly entered the town of Akobo on Tuesday morning but were later pushed out.
“This morning an SSPDF force together with the former commissioner entered Akobo town and attacked our forces and managed to capture the town briefly,” Wiyual said. “But in the afternoon around 3 p.m., our forces attacked again and managed to push them out.”
He said the government troops retreated to Wech-Deng after the fighting.
Wiyual said three civilians, including a mentally ill man in the market, were killed during the clashes. He also claimed two SSPDF soldiers were killed and their weapons seized.
He added that later fighting in the evening left four SSPDF soldiers dead and four AK-47 rifles and one RPG abandoned before the force withdrew.
Akobo County is home to about 245,000 people, including thousands displaced from other parts of Jonglei State.
Thousands of civilians began fleeing across the border into Ethiopia after a 72-hour ultimatum issued by the army expired on Monday.
However, peacekeepers from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) were still reported to be at their temporary operating base in Akobo despite a military order last week instructing the mission to close the facility and withdraw within 72 hours.