JUBA: At least 169 people have been killed and buried in a mass grave in northern South Sudan, two local officials said on Monday, as the country sees a dramatic increase in violence.
South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, has been beset by civil war, poverty and massive corruption since it was formed in 2011.
The UN warns of a return to “all-out civil war” as a power-sharing deal between President Salva Kiir and his long-time rival, Riek Machar, has unraveled over the past year.
The desperately poor east African country also faces chronic ethnic violence and violent cattle-raiding.
HIGHLIGHT
• South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, has been beset by civil war, poverty and massive corruption since it was formed in 2011.
The latest massacre happened early on Sunday in Abiemnom c≠ounty near the Sudan border.
“A total of 169 bodies have been laid to rest in a mass grave,” Elizabeth Achol, health minister in northern Ruweng administrative area, said.
Local Information Minister James Monyluak gave the same toll, saying it included women, children and elderly people and could increase further as more bodies are found.
A diplomatic source placed the death toll at 70 but said it could rise.
The government condemned “the barbaric attack” in a statement, confirming the killing of two senior local officials.
Minister of Information Ateny Wek Ateny said casualties include “both civilians and members of law enforcement” and that the incident would be investigated thoroughly.
Initial reports indicated the attack was carried out by an ethnic Nuer group, potentially in revenge for the killing of some traders, the diplomatic source added, though no group has claimed responsibility.
Many residents have fled to nearby villages, while others have sought protection at a local UN compound, Monyluak said.
“The security situation has since stabilized, with government security forces deployed and now in control of the area,” he added.
UN peacekeepers were “temporarily sheltering some 1,000 civilians within our base in the area and providing emergency medical care to the injured,” a spokesperson for the UN Mission in South Sudan said.
Clashes between government and opposition forces have focused on Jonglei state in the last two months, where some 280,000 have been displaced according to the UN.
Humanitarian workers have also been targeted.
On Monday, Doctors Without Borders said 26 members of staff were missing following an airstrike on one of its facilities.
The organization has suspended medical services in Lankien and Pieri in Jonglei state.
UN rights chief Volker Turk voiced alarm Friday at the country’s deteriorating situation, calling for swift action to avert a return to full-scale civil war.
