South Sudan Army Repels Rebel Attack on Malakal

KAMPALA, Uganda—South Sudan’s army said it had repelled a rebel attack on Malakal, but added that more violence has flared near the capital of Upper Nile state, home to the young nation’s only functional oil fields.

Military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer on Wednesday said government troops had killed as many as 36 rebel fighters in clashes overnight, thwarting the rebels’ latest effort to take over the state.

The clashes further threaten a cease-fire between warring factions amid concerns over the future of oil exports from a nation that hosts sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest crude reserves.

“Our forces have repelled a rebel attack on Malakal, but some isolated clashes are continuing” Col. Aguer said. “We hope to bring the situation under total control by the end of today.”

A rebel spokesman couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Rebels clashed with government troops around 10 kilometers outside of Malakal late Tuesday. Heavy explosions and gunfire continued to rock the town on Wednesday, forcing hundreds of people to seek refuge at a United Nations camp within the town, aid officials said.

The U.N. said at least 1,500 civilians arrived at its protection site to flee the fighting, bringing the total number of civilians being protected by the U.N. in the town to 28,000. Medical agency Doctors Without Borders on Wednesday said it had suspended some of its outreach activities in Upper Nile as the fighting intensified.

“At this moment, the situation in Malakal town remains extremely volatile,” said Wairimu Gitau, the spokesman for the agency, known by its French acronym MSF. Two civilians have so far been confirmed dead, with several others injured, MSF said.

Malakal changed hands between government and rebel fighters several times in the early stages of the conflict, which stems from a power struggle that erupted in December 2013 between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, Riek Machar. The town has been under government control since March 2014.

Crude output from oil fields in Upper Nile totals around 160,000 barrels a day, down from more than 220,000 barrels before the start of fighting, which has deterred oil companies from ramping up production.

Messrs. Kiir and Machar have failed to reach a peace deal after more than a year of talks in Ethiopia. The U.S. and European Union imposed sanctions on several commanders from both sides last year, but rival factions have continued to attack each other.

More than 50,000 people have been killed in the conflict, which is also threatening to plunge the nation, which is roughly the size of France, into famine, aid agencies said.

Write to Nicholas Bariyo at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.^[1]

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