A top military official has instructed his forces deployed to front lines in Jonglei State to “spare no lives,” including the elderly, in remarks that have sparked alarm among observers.
Gen. Johnson Olony, the assistant chief of defence forces for mobilisation and disarmament and commander of the Agwelek militia, made the remarks while addressing his fighters in Duk County, Jonglei State.
“This time round, I told the chief [Chief of Defense Forces] yesterday this will mark the end of problems in the Upper Nile region,” Olony said. “When we arrive there, don’t spare an elderly, don’t spare a chicken, don’t spare a house and anything. We are tired of problems every year until we have gotten old in problems.”
The Agwelek militia, which has been partially integrated into the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF), has recently been deployed to several areas, including the Heglig oilfields near the Sudan border, following a tripartite agreement between President Salva Kiir’s government and rival parties in Sudan aimed at protecting oil infrastructure.
Olony was appointed assistant chief of defence forces by President Kiir in January 2025, despite a controversial past marked by repeated defections, armed clashes and allegations of grave human rights abuses.
South Sudan has a long history of ethnically driven violence in the Greater Upper Nile region, encompassing Jonglei, Upper Nile and Unity states, where civilians — particularly women, children and the elderly — have repeatedly borne the brunt of military operations.
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and international monitors have warned that inflammatory rhetoric by commanders often precedes spikes in killings, sexual violence, forced displacement and looting.
“We are defending the nation”
Addressing Agwelek troops preparing to confront SPLA-IO forces and the White Army, which recently seized SSPDF garrisons in the Lou Nuer areas, including Pajut in Duk County, Gen. Olony framed the deployment as a national duty rather than a financial motivation.
“We are not fighting for salaries, we are defending the nation,” he said. “It is our time and we are up to the task. We are here for the sake of the nation, not salaries.”
He told the fighters he had recently travelled to Bentiu and Malakal as part of a broader reorganisation and mobilisation effort.
“We have not met for a long time because I was busy with reorganisation and mobilisation. I went to Bentiu, I went to Malakal and thank God we have met here today,” he said.
Olony acknowledged logistical shortcomings, including a lack of vehicles, heavy weapons and basic equipment such as boots for his Agwelek forces deployed to northern Jonglei State.
“The things that you lack are the boots or shoes,” he said. “The boots I brought with me will not be enough for all of you.”
He warned that if the government in Juba failed to provide vehicles and weapons, his Agwelek forces would refuse to advance.
“If the government fails to bring the vehicles, we will remain behind and let those who have vehicles go ahead,” he said, adding that he would demand at least 30 pickup trucks mounted with heavy guns.
“If the forces who already have vehicles and guns don’t want to go to the frontline, we will take those things from them so that we go.”
Ethnic violence
Olony described the conflict in the Greater Upper Nile region as cyclical and ethnically charged, involving the Dinka, Nuer and Shilluk communities.
“We are tired of wars and problems in the Greater Upper Nile region between the Dinka, Nuer and Shilluk,” he said. “Every year there is a coup, every year there is a problem, and all these problems start in the Upper Nile region.”
Repeating his earlier remarks, Olony again declared that the coming government offensive would be decisive.
“When we arrive there, don’t spare an elderly, don’t spare a chicken, don’t spare a house and anything,” he said. “We are tired of problems every year until we have gotten old in problems.”
“I joined the SPLA when I was as young as 19 years old and now I am 52 years old, bullet after bullet without clear reasons,” he added. “I will end this problem this year.”
Integration failures
Olony also revealed that most Agwelek fighters currently deployed to the front lines in Jonglei have not been formally absorbed into the SSPDF, despite provisions in the peace agreement calling for unified national forces.
“Most of the forces and soldiers currently deployed to frontlines from the Agwelek are not absorbed into the SSPDF,” he said. “But it is us who have to absorb ourselves. We are not going to wait for someone to come and integrate us into the army.”
He dismissed concerns over official recognition of Agwelek ranks, saying battlefield authority mattered more than formal payrolls.
“Anyone who feels his right has been infringed, come to me and I will confirm the rank that you want,” he said. “This is a rank for fighting, not salaries.”
In a statement that appeared to mock what he described as widespread and arbitrary promotions within the security services, Olony added:
“Let everyone have ranks. From now onward a man will be a Major General and his wife will be a Brigadier General and your child will be a Colonel if this is what South Sudanese want.”
Political appointments
Olony also informed his forces of the appointment of Gen. James Obur Aywok Kur, an Agwelek commander, as commissioner of Panyikang County in Upper Nile State, underscoring the group’s growing political influence within state structures.
Gen. Obur was also present as Gen. Olony addressed the forces in Jonglei.
A controversial history
Johnson Olony’s military career has long been marred by allegations of abuses. Human rights organizations, including UNICEF, have previously accused his forces of recruiting and using child soldiers around Malakal during the 2014–2015 phase of South Sudan’s civil war.
Initially aligned with the government, Olony later defected and took up arms, saying he was fighting to protect the land of the Chollo (Shilluk) people in Upper Nile State. He later joined the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army-In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) led by Riek Machar.
Under the 2018 revitalised peace agreement, Machar nominated Olony as governor of Upper Nile State, but President Kiir rejected the nomination, branding him a “warmonger.”
In August 2021, a rival SPLA-IO faction led by Gen. Simon Gatwech Dual announced it had ousted Machar in what became known as the SPLA-IO Kit-Gwang Declaration, appointing Olony as Gatwech’s deputy.
In January 2022, the Kit-Gwang faction and Olony’s Agwelek forces signed separate peace agreements with Kiir’s government in Khartoum. However, the deals soon faltered, with faction leaders accusing the government of failing to implement key provisions.
Gatwech later dismissed Olony as his deputy, and clashes erupted between their forces. Olony subsequently declared his willingness to pursue peace and return to Juba.
His return to the capital in May 2023 followed months of negotiations with security figures loyal to President Kiir.