NEWSLINE

South Sudanese government on Friday denied reports that forces loyal to Dr. Reik Machar have seized Malakal, the capital of Upper Nile State. 27 December 2013 Kuol Manyang Juuk, the South Sudanese Defense Minister insists his forces are still in control of Malakal despite rebels claims, dismissing all other media reports. [File] Gurtong. JUBA, 27 December 2013 [Gurtong] –  Kuol Manyang Juuk, the South Sudanese Defense Minister insists his forces are still in control of Malakal despite rebels claims, dismissing all other media reports. “The elements of Riek [Machar]…were defeated and they are no any longer there in Malakal,” Kuol told Gurtong on Friday, saying SPLA forces are being reinforced to expand its control in the state. Fighting in Malakal erupted since December 23, 2013 after forces loyal to Riek Machar rebelled. Though Moses Ruai Lat, the official Spokesman of the Unity State Military Interim government under Riek Machar’s governance exclusively t

NEWSLINEKENYA: Why South Sudan has exploded in violence :

Bor Globe . This is a guest post by College of William and Mary political scientist   Philip Roessler .  His research focuses on political violence, and he has conducted extensive fieldwork in Sudan and South Sudan. As a poor, landlocked, oil-dependent state with a long history of violent conflict and a belligerent neighbor to the north, South Sudan’s post-independence challenges were always going to be immense. But there was much hope that with wise leadership, prudent policy-making, an inclusive government and generous foreign assistance, South Sudan could leapfrog some of the post-independence crises that plagued other African countries. Tragically, as evidenced by the   violent events   that have transpired over the past 10 days (for a useful backgrounder see   this post   by Max Fisher), South Sudan has fallen prey to one of the most pernicious sources of state failure in post-colonial Africa:   the coup-civil war trap . This trap leads rulers to pursue ethnic