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A member of the SPLA plays a
trombone in Juba (Photo Getty)
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South Sudanese cabinet chaired by President
Salva Kiir on Friday passed a resolution condemning the "continuous
unprovoked attacks" by the Sudanese army in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, while
the army said it put its forces on high alert.
"The council of ministers in its
sitting of today chaired by President Salva Kiir Mayardit received reports of
repeated attacks on the state of Northern Bahr el Ghazal in which some
civilians have been killed. They have been carried out by the Sudanese armed
forces for the last four days, in areas which are inside the territory of South
Sudan," said Barnaba Marial Benjamin, minister of information on Friday.
Marial further said the council
unanimously passed a resolution condemning the attack and called on the
international community to hold Sudan responsible for the loss of lives and
properties in the area.
"They came again today but we
have not yet received details but it is likely there must be reports,"
Marial added.
The Sudanese army denied attacking the
South Sudanese territory of Northern Bahr el-Ghazal stressing that its attacks
are limited to the neighbouring East Darfur state where it had spoke about newly
established rebel camps, 10 kilometers north to the disputed area of mile 14.
Al-Sawarmi Khaled, Sudanese army
spokesperson, also accused Juba of continuing to back the rebels groups members
of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) violating a security deal were the
two sides committed to stop such support.
Since, the Sudanese army remain silent
on its activities on the borders with the South Sudan.
Philip Aguer,SPLA spokesperson, on
Thursday accused Khartoum of massing troops along the border near Raja in Raja
County in Western Bahr el Ghazal adding that their intention is to carry out
ground attacks insides the South Sudanese territory.
Major General Santino Deng Wol,
commander of division III told Sudan Tribune on Friday that the SPLA
forces are on a high state of alert. He added they are closely monitoring the
movement of the Sudanese troops and stressed there were no air attacks but were
flying about in the area.
"They were hovering about. We
have also been reliably informed of their activities. We are fully aware but as
an army we just cannot act without receiving orders. We are waiting for
directives and instructions from the general command," Wol further told
Sudan Tribune from Wunyiik, an army base in the area.
General Wol said he returned from a
field visit to SPLA advanced positions in areas around Abyei and Twic county to
find that some parts of Aweil North County have been completely deserted by
civilians due to aerial bombardments carried out by the Sudanese armed forces.
“I have not yet gone there because I
just returned from a visit to Twic and the neighbouring areas”, said General
Wol; referring to areas around Abyei." I am planning to go there soon so
that I see the damage caused by these bombardments myself and to talk with the
commissioner to encourage civilians to dig trenches in their houses instead of
allowing themselves to be killed by flying shrapnel and bombs out of
fears," he stressed.
At least 7 people, most of whom
civilians, predominantly women and children have died in air attacks allegedly
carried out by Sudanese armed forces since Tuesday. Several others have
sustained injuries and uncounted more civilians have been displaced.
Although Sudan has denied any
involvement in the attack, local officials and the South Sudan Army (SPLA) say
there are clear evidences that show Sudan armed forces have bombed the area.
Madut Dut Yel, acting governor
commended the army for showing restrain, saying that Sudan’s attempts to “drag
the new nation back to War" are not in the interest of the citizens of the
two countries.
"The need for peace to prevail
between the two countries could clearly be seen from how Sudanese celebrated
the signing of the cooperation agreement when president Bashir returned to
Khartoum. They started crossing with goods before implementation process of the
agreement has actually been officially started," Yel told Sudan Tribune on
Friday.
He commended local youth for
responding to the development, including taking away some elderly people,
pregnant women and the children from the area and remained behind.
The official said they will not
response to Khartoum’s military provocations aiming at returning the two
countries to war.
We are committed "to the
objective of having two viable states although someone is trying to derails
these efforts. We will remain committed to respecting policy of our national
government and the leadership of the SPLM."
If we hit back, then we shall have
helped Sudan "to accomplish its purposes and goals of wanting the two
countries to return to war because this is the tactic which officials in the
National Congress Party employed to remain in power," he further said.
Mel Wal Achien, an area Member of
Parliament in the national Assembly in Juba said the Sudanese army want to
empty the area from the South Sudanese population before to capture it.
"The Sudan armed forces (…) have
been bombing villages deeply inside South Sudan which are not located anywhere
near military positions. The intention is clearly to drive away civil
population from these areas so that it moves in and occupy. These are the
tactics which Sudan employs and we know them, I am a soldier myself. I fought
them”, Achien told Sudan Tribune on Friday.
He called on the population to not
lose trust and confidence in the capability of the SPLA to protect them and
their properties from external aggression, explaining the army would not have
allowed such ground attack.
Deng Thiep Akok, former commissioner
of Aweil County, said he has not received new development on Friday suggesting
fresh attack on the area by the Sudanese armed forces. Akok also assured
civilians in the area that the country’s has not relinquished it roles and
duties to protecting the territories which falls inside the new country and its
resources.
"Our army, the SPLA, he said is
currently giving diplomatic efforts and peace a chance, but are also prepared
for the possibility if the peace cannot hold. They know when to act
accordingly," he said.
Colonel Phillip Aguer, spokesperson of
South Sudan army (the SPLA), also said his office did not receive reports of
new aerial bombardments on Friday but that the army was "closely
monitoring activities of the Sudanese armed forces along the border areas and
was on maximum alert."
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