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Instability in South Sudan

Vice President’s Allies Freed in Apparent De-Escalation

  • The Sudanese government has reportedly released eight of the twenty-one people it detained in recent arrests; the freed prisoners are mostly allies of Vice President Machar (Radio Tamazuj)

Uganda Deploys Military Forces to South Sudan’s Capital to “Secure It”

  • Tensions between South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit and First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny have grown after the government detained senior Machar-aligned officials in recent days (Reuters)
  • A 2018 peace agreement ended a five-year civil war between groups aligned with Kiir and Machar (Al Jazeera)

Ministers Sacked Amid Rising Political Tensions

  • The minister of justice and constitutional affairs, the minister of general education and instruction, and the trade minister were all removed by President Salva Kiir as political tensions and fears of a return to civil war grew (Anadolu Agency)

United States Orders Non-emergency Staff to Leave South Sudan

  • The U.S. State Department announced it had ordered all non-emergency government staff in South Sudan to leave amid rising political tension and violence (BBC)

UN Commission on Human Rights: South Sudan Experiencing “Alarming Regression” in Country’s Political Transition

  • The UN Commission on Human Rights chairperson, Yasmin Sooka, has warned South Sudan is currently experiencing an “alarming regression” in its move to representative democracy “that could erase years of hard-won progress” (Reuters)

South Sudanese General and Dozens More Killed in Attack on UN Helicopter

  • General Majur Dak and nearly thirty soldiers were killed after a UN helicopter conducting an airlift from the northern town of Nasir was attacked by forces of the White Army, the militia loyal to Vice President Riek Machar; President Kiir called for calm in a national address shortly after the incident, repeating that South Sudan “will not go back to war” (Guardian)

Opposition Leaders Arrested by Army as Vice President’s House Surrounded

  • General Gabriel Doup Lam and Minister of Petroleum Puto Kang Chol, two senior figures in the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition and allies of Vice-President Riek Rachar, have been arrested by South Sudanese forces along with several other senior military figures; the Vice-President’s house was later surrounded by the army, prompting fears of a broader crisis and the unraveling of the 2018 peace deal (Al Jazeera)
  • The South Sudanese government announced it had detained the opposition leaders because of recent actions in “conflict with the law”; the government believes the leaders, which include close allies of Vice President Riek Machar, have actively encouraged and supported the arming of the White Army, a militia loyal to Machar which has recently taken control of the strategic town of Nasir in Upper Nile state (Nation)

World Health Organization Warns of Developing Humanitarian Crisis in Border Town of Renk

  • The UN’s World Health Organization warned as many as one hundred sixty thousand people have fled from Sudan to the South Sudanese border town of Renk in the Upper Nile state since December 2024; the organization warned this has stretched local healthcare infrastructure beyond their capacity and heightened the risk of a disease outbreak (Sudan Tribune)

UN Report Finds South Sudan’s Leaders Responsible for Human Rights Violations, Corruption, and Obstruction of Peace

  • A report published by the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner concluded that South Sudan’s political and military leadership has actively participated and contributed to extrajudicial killings, conflict-related sexual violence, and illegal appropriation of national wealth at the expense of institutional development; the report now urges leaders to use the two-year extension to the country’s political transition as an opportunity to “implement the core outstanding elements of the Revitalized Agreement, including the commitment to adopt a permanent constitution” (OHCHR)

South Sudan Orders Closure of Schools for Two Weeks Due to Heatwave

  • The announcement comes as temperatures may reach up to 42°C (107°F) for the rest of February and early March, and the country’s deputy education minister stated “an average of twelve students” collapse every day in Juba (AP)

Deadly Clashes in South Sudan Kill Civilians, Wound Peacekeeper

  • Violence flared over February 14 and February 15 between South Sudanese military forces and unidentified armed rebels, resulting in an unknown number of civilian and combatant casualties; the United Nations also stated that a peacekeeper sustained injuries from a mortar shell strike in the area (Al Jazeera)

Sudan’s First Vice President Threatens Withdrawal From Peace Agreement

  • Vice President Riek Machar, who currently holds the highest rank among the country’s five vice presidents, stated his intention to leave the country’s 2018 power-sharing agreement if South Sudanese President Salva Kiir does not reinstate the recently removed health minister and governor of Western Equatoria state (AP)

South Sudan’s President Sacks Senior Officials, Including Two Vice Presidents

  • President Salva Kiir removed two longstanding vice presidents, who were granted power under the 2018 peace agreement to end the country’s civil war, installing his close financial advisor Benjamin Bel Mol in their place; analysts believe that Bel Mol may succeed Kiir (Reuters)

Mpox Outbreak Declared After Confirmed Case in Juba

  • The country’s Ministry of Health announced that the case originated in Uganda and the patient is currently in isolation under hospital care; South Sudan is now the twenty-second country in Africa afflicted by the Mpox virus (WHO Africa)

At Least Thirty-Five Killed in Armed Raid on Cattle Camp in South Sudan

  • The unidentified assailants targeted cattle herders of the Dinka Bor community in the state of Eastern Equatoria, taking eleven thousand cattle in the process (Reuters)

South Sudan Reverses Social Media Ban

  • Juba announced an end to the temporary ban on access to Facebook and TikTok; authorities implemented the ban after videos of graphic killings surfaced on social media platforms, which have since been removed (Reuters)

South Sudan Suspends Access to Social Media Platforms After Videos Triggered Riots

  • Authorities suspended access to Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms after videos depicting alleged killings of South Sudanese nationals in Sudan sparked riots; rioters blamed the killings in Sudan’s El Gezira state on Sudan’s military, which said there had been “individual” violations in El Gezira (Reuters)

South Sudan to Restart Oil Exportation via Sudan

  • South Sudan’s energy ministry met with Sudanese officials on Saturday to discuss refurbishing war-damaged oil pipelines in Sudan and restarting exportation through Port Sudan (Reuters)
  • Blockage of the pipeline has created a humanitarian crisis in South Sudan, as oil exportation makes up more than 90 percent of the government’s revenues (Bloomberg)

South Sudan Spy Chief to Become Governor of Northern State

  • General Akool Koor Kuc’s appointment as governor of Warrup comes amidst massive violence in the state; in the past week alone, revenge attacks by opposition factions have killed at least twenty citizens and injured thirty-seven others (BBC)

Lawyers Petition Supreme Court Over Election Delay

  • A group of lawyers filed a case at the country’s top court challenging a postponement of the country’s would-be first-ever elections announced earlier this month, calling it unconstitutional; originally scheduled for this December, the government said the vote would be kicked to 2026 (Sudan Tribune)

New Security Law Jeopardizes Peace Talks

  • Opposition negotiators to a provisional peace deal in South Sudan said they would not sign it unless they saw the removal of a law that allows people to be detained without a warrant; Kenya has been hosting negotiations since May between government envoys and rebel groups that were excluded from a 2018 deal to end the country’s five-year civil war (AP)

New Peace Agreement Drafted at Nairobi Peace Talks

  • Delegates to peace talks in Nairobi have drafted a South Sudan peace agreement that would create a leadership council, rebrand the structure of the presidency, and limit the role of the cabinet and legislature, among other reforms (Sudan Tribune)
  • Vice President Riek Machar expressed concerns that the agreement aims to replace South Sudan’s 2018 peace deal, advocating instead for the new agreement to complement the original deal (Toronto Star)

UN: South Sudan Must Withdraw Troops from Abyei

  • Jean-Pierre Lacroix, UN undersecretary for Peace Operations, expressed concerns about the presence of South Sudanese forces in the disputed Abyei region, explaining that it hinders UN missions in the area and could further inflame regional tensions (VOA; AFP)

UN Warns of Food Insecurity, Starvation in Coming Months

  • UN Food and Agriculture Organizations estimate that more than seven million people in South Sudan will experience acute food insecurity or worse between now and July due to worsening economic and climate conditions amid violent local conflicts (AP)

Youth Attack Kills at Least Twelve in South Sudan, Fifteen Children Still Missing

  • Fifteen children are still missing after the attack on a village in the country’s east, which precedes national elections and marks an escalation in local conflicts among armed groups (Reuters)