The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Juba, South Sudan | THE INDEPENDENT & AGENCIES | The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has warned that the country is on the brink of relapsing into widespread conflict, after First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar was put under house arrest on Wednesday.
Reports from Juba indicate that VP Machar and his wife, Angelina Teny, have been placed under house arrest. His security detail has been removed from his residence, leaving only his personal guard, Mark Diu.
Reath Muoch Tang, acting chairperson of the National Committee on Foreign Relations for the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), condemned the arrest as a violation of the 2018 peace agreement that formed the unity government.
Tang said the defense minister and chief of national security were in the convoy that delivered an arrest warrant to Machar, along with more than 20 heavily armed vehicles that forcibly entered his residence.
“His bodyguards were disarmed, and an arrest warrant was delivered to him under unclear charges. Attempts are currently being made to relocate him,” Tang said in a statement on Wednesday night.
He said the arrest was a “blatant” violation of the constitution and the Revitalized Peace Agreement, as no legal procedures, such as lifting his immunity, were followed.
President Salva Kiir earlier in the day also ordered an immediate halt to all military operations by the country’s armed forces and the UPDF. The UPDF are deployed in South Sudan under “Operation Mlinzi wa Kimya.”
The deployment follows a request by the South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to the Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, seeking urgent support in stabilizing the country after renewed conflict broke out.
The Commander Land Force of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF), Lt Gen Kayanja Muhanga told departing troops in Gulu last week that they are expected to reinforce peacekeeping efforts and prevent further escalation of violence in the country.
We are concerned by reports South Sudan’s First Vice President Machar is under house arrest. We urge President Kiir to reverse this action & prevent further escalation of the situation. It is time for South Sudan’s leaders to demonstrate sincerity of stated commitments to peace.
— Bureau of African Affairs (@AsstSecStateAF) March 27, 2025
Clashes have reportedly taken place this week between the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) and Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) near Rejaf, south of Juba, and at Wunaliet, west of the capital city. Reports indicate that the Ugandan army, UPDF, is involved in the fighting.
The situation in Upper Nile remains volatile, with reports of further mobilization of armed forces and aerial bombardment of civilian areas, allegedly using devices containing a highly flammable liquid that acts as an accelerant on explosion, causing significant casualties and horrific injuries.
The UN mission had earlier also called for all parties to take immediate steps to protect civilians, prevent further displacement, and uphold their commitments under the ceasefire to avoid deepening the humanitarian crisis.
The TROIKA countries, Norway, the United States, and the United Kingdom, along with Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, and the European Union Delegation, have offered to facilitate direct talks between President Kiir and First Vice President Machar.
“The collective message of the region and the international community is the same. We remain convinced that there is only one way out of the cycle of conflict, and that is to return to the Revitalized Peace Agreement, in letter and spirit,” Nicholas Haysom, special representative of the UN secretary-general and head of UNMISS, said in a joint statement issued in Juba on Monday evening.
Halt to military operations
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir ordered an immediate halt to all military operations by the country’s armed forces on Wednesday, according to a statement from his office, the Sudan Tribune has reported.
Kiir, who is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces, directed the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) and allied Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) to cease hostilities immediately.
“‘All forces under my command are hereby ordered to cease any form of attack or military operation against any forces with immediate effect,’ the presidential statement said.”
The statement did not provide further details on the implementation of the ceasefire or the specific groups targeted by the halt in operations.
South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, signed a peace deal in 2018 that ended a civil war between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and Machar. Nearly 400,000 people died in the civil war.
Relations between Kiir and Machar, who have dominated South Sudan’s politics for decades, remain strained. The clashes and latest political tensions between the two leaders have unsettled many citizens and the international community.
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FULL UNMISS STATEMENT
Following reports tonight of the detention of First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, calls on all Parties to exercise restraint and uphold the Revitalized Peace Agreement.
“Tonight, the country’s leaders stand on the brink of relapsing into widespread conflict or taking the country forward towards peace, recovery and democracy in the spirit of the consensus that was reached in 2018 when they signed and committed to implementing a Revitalized Peace Agreement,” said the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of UNMISS, Nicholas Haysom.
“Unilateral amendments by Parties to that agreement that jeopardize the hard-won gains of the past seven years risk returning the country back into a state of war. This will not only devastate South Sudan but also affect the entire region.”
UNMISS again urges the Parties to immediately cease hostilities and engage in constructive dialogue that puts the best interests of their people at the forefront of this pivotal moment for the world’s newest nation
