NEWSLINE

NEWSLINEKENYA: Rebels Claim Pursuit Of SPLA Out Of Malakal : South Sudan rebels on Wednesday claim they were pursuing the government forces outside Malakal town. The rebels also claim the full... text

South Sudan rebels on Wednesday claim they were pursuing the government forces outside Malakal town. The rebels also claim the full control of Malakal town, the state capital of the oil-rich Upper Nile state. 21 February 2014 South Sudanese government soldiers. [File] JUBA – 21 February 2014 [Gurtong] -  Speaking to Radio Miraya on Wednesday, the rebels’ Spokesman Lul Ruai:  “I am not sure if there is any fighting inside Malakal town. May be outside Malakal town where our forces are still pursuing the government forces. They are running towards Akoka,” Lul said. Lul claimed that there have been bombings on their forces on Wednesday morning by Ugandan troops. He denied claims by the SPLA that they are involved in looting in the town but he instead said they are peacefully positioning themselves. The rebels’ mouthpiece said fighting escalated on Tuesday after when the SPLA started gunfire on their positions. The rebels claim full contr

  United Nation Children Fund (UNICEF) says it is alarmed by the increase in recruitment of children into armed conflict in Central African Republic, South Sudan and Syria. 12 February 2014 Child Soldiers. [IRIN Photo] By Gabriel Mayom JUBA, 12 February, 2014 [Gurtong] -  The concern comes as the world marks  the International Day against the use of Child Soldiers on 12 February today. In a joint press statement, UNICEF and Leila Zerrougui, the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) for Children and Armed Conflict, have created a fact sheet on recruitment and use of children. “The United Nations continues to receive credible reports that children have been recruited and used by Government and opposition forces in the conflict in South Sudan,” the statement said. The allegation comes at a time the Government of South Sudan has already committed herself to preventing and ending the recruitment and use of children by its national security force

  UPDF soldiers holding brooms as they march through Juba town  during Tarehe Sita celebrations, Tuesday. PHOTO: Kennedy Oryema When they were done, they left the places much better and cleaner than they found them, winning praise of the local people. Given the recent conflict, heavily armed soldiers, some with guns strung to their backs others with rifles dangling off their shoulders attacked piles of rubbish and garbage with various implements such as spades and cleaned them out. In some places they just swept. The rubbish was loaded on to waiting trucks to be dumped away. The exercise part of the numerous activities to mark the annual Tarehe sita (February 6)  army day which will be commemorated tomorrow a. In Uganda, national events take place in  Busheyi under the theme: National Consciousness and Pan Africanism the corner stone for African peace, stability and transformation. Several other activities to m

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