A South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) major on Friday testified against suspended First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar and seven co-defendants in the high-profile trial over the deadly attack in Nasir.
Machar, 73, and his co-accused are charged with murder, treason and crimes against humanity before a special court led by a panel of three judges.
The charges stem from a March 2025 assault on the Nasir garrison allegedly by the White Army and Machar’s SPLA-IO forces. The attack killed Maj. Gen. David Majur Dak, more than 250 soldiers and a member of a UN helicopter crew, according to prosecutors.
The court, presided over by Judge James Alala Deng, heard evidence during its 23rd session at Freedom Hall in Juba. The prosecution plans to present 16 witnesses, eight of whom are under protection. A translation was provided during Friday’s proceedings.
Maj. Peter Malual Deng Lual, an SSPDF officer and one of the witnesses, presented a set of documents, videos and administrative reports he said demonstrated coordination between SPLA-IO generals, local authorities and White Army militia members ahead of the Nasir attack.
Maj. Malual said he is part of a joint military investigation team formed after the March attack in Nasir. “The report was compiled by a committee of seven officers, and we were given six weeks to complete it,” he said.
Among the exhibits was a video showing Lt. Gen. James Koang Chuol, former SSPDF assistant chief of defense forces for training, and Lt. Gen. Johnson Olony, SSPDF assistant chief of defense forces for mobilization and disarmament, addressing troops in Malakal on deployments to Nasir. Another video showed both generals speaking to the media in Bilpham regarding the Nasir incident.
Additional footage, Malual said, depicted White Army fighters and SPLA-IO forces mobilizing along the Sobat River toward SSPDF positions, as well as SPLM-IO lawmaker Gatwech Lam Puoch publicly opposing the deployment of government troops to Nasir.
A separate video allegedly showed Col. Tor Gile Thoan, a White Army commander who also doubles as an SPLA-IO officer, leading the March 3 attack on the Nasir garrison.
The witness also submitted a presidential order integrating the Agwelek militia into the SSPDF; an SSPDF directive transferring forces to Nasir; a letter from Machar forming a 10-member committee; a press statement issued by SPLM-IO spokesman Pal Mai Deng; and a Joint Transitional Security Committee (JTSC) letter naming Col. Tor Gile Thoan as an officer.
Major Malual said: “Agwelek forces were integrated into the SSPDF in April 2020, and the Abushok forces have been around since the liberation struggle.”
Major Malual said the SPLM-IO in Nassir opposed the planned rotation of SSPDF forces, arguing it was an attempt to disarm the White Army and replace them with Agwelek and Abushok forces. He said the political resistance deepened mistrust, fuelling clashes that later escalated into full-scale violence.
Malual told the court that White Army fighters, backed by elements of SPLA-IO, had launched multiple attacks on SSPDF troops in Nasir prior to the March 2025 assault.
He said White Army and SPLA-IO forces killed eight SSPDF soldiers collecting firewood in October 2024, 13 soldiers returning from a market in November, and six others fishing in February 2025.
According to Malual, SPLA-IO generals coordinated, funded and mobilized the White Army to attack the Nasir garrison. He claimed Machar established a 10-member committee—including representatives from the White Army, SPLA-IO forces, the Nasir County commissioner and local chiefs—to facilitate troop movements from Malakal to Nasir. Members of that committee, he said, took part in attacks on SSPDF barges on Feb. 26, 27 and 28.
He said the same forces later launched the March 3 assault after being repelled during the river attacks.
“The same youth who were repelled and scattered during the attack on the barges on February 26, 27 and 28 appeared in the committee formed by Dr. Riek Machar to facilitate the movement of barges from Malakal to Nasir,” Malual told the court.
Major Malual told the court that a witness from Nassir described a 25 February gathering attended by White Army youth and SPLA-IO officers. “After the meeting, they went to the police station, pulled down the South Sudan flag and burned it,” he said.
Malual further alleged that Machar, the former commissioner of Nasir County James Gatluak Lew, and Col. Tor Gile Thoan held a phone meeting that agreed on launching the March 3 attack.
He said a confidential source warned Maj. Gen. Majur Dak of the planned assault and alerted SSPDF headquarters in Bilpham, as well as advising soldiers to evacuate their families.
Only two witnesses were present in court Friday; one testified and one did not. The remaining witnesses are expected to appear next week.
Judge Deng adjourned the hearing to Monday, Nov. 24.
The defendants are Dr. Riek Machar, Puot Kang Chuol, Mam Pal Dhuor, Gatwech Lam Puoch, Lt. Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam, Camilo Gatmai Kel, Mading Yak Riek and Dominic Gatgok Riek.