Both sides have accused each other of breaking the August 29 ceasefire aimed at ending a brutal 20-month civil war, and the United States has said it is preparing possible new UN sanctions for two more individuals for their role in the continued fighting.
Ceasefire monitors from the regional East Africa bloc IGAD, which led efforts to negotiate the peace deal, are meant to be monitoring the ceasefire, the eighth to have been agreed since war began in December 2013.
But IGAD monitors for now lack the resources to monitor the rival forces, fractured into multiple militia units, with the rebels themselves divided.
"We have asked for monitors from the United States or the United Nations to fill the gap, to observe the ceasefire to stop these accusations," army spokesman Philip Aguer told AFP.
The request for international monitors had been made by the army chief Paul Malong, he added.
The world's youngest nation, South Sudan descended into bloodshed in December 2013 when President Salva Kiir accused rebel chief Riek Machar, then his deputy, of planning a coup.
The violence has left tens of thousands of people dead and the impoverished country split along ethnic lines.
Aguer dismissed rebel claims late on Monday that government forces had attacked rebel positions for a fifth day in the battleground northeastern state of Upper Nile as "lies", and said that the army "remains committed to the ceasefire".
But rebel spokesman William Gatjiath Deng claimed helicopter gunships from neighbouring Uganda -- which sent in troops to back government forces, but who under the peace deal, must withdraw by October 10 -- had pounded their positions.
It was not possible to independently verify the reports.
Newer articles:
- Congressional Interest in South Sudan - 10/09/2015 10:45
- South Sudan Peace Deal: Parliament Unanimously Approves Agreement But Doubts Remain - 10/09/2015 09:46
- Veteran S.Sudan journalist quits over death threats - 10/09/2015 03:06
- South Sudan passes 2015/2016 budget as fighting continues - 08/09/2015 13:04
- Sudanese female soccer players strive to build national team - 08/09/2015 05:15
Older news items
- South Sudan Government to Approve Peace Deal Soon - 08/09/2015 00:12
- South Sudanese In Diaspora To Disseminate Messages Of Peace Through Social Network - 07/09/2015 04:45
- S. Sudan Rebels to Ratify Peace Deal Tuesday - 06/09/2015 13:37
- South Sudanese child soldier making documentary about experience - 06/09/2015 05:05
- South Sudan makes history with AFCON qualifiers win - 06/09/2015 03:57
Latest news items (all categories):
- The Collo Kingdom Remains Underdeveloped: Five Hundred Years Later! - 03/02/2025 12:57
- Attack on South Sudan cattle camps kills 35 - 03/02/2025 12:46
- في صفقة مثيرة.. الإمارات تشتري نفط الجنوب في باطن الأرض لمدة 20 عامًا - 03/02/2025 12:42
- South Sudan: Can oil production save the economy? - 30/01/2025 19:27
- 20 oil workers and crew die in South Sudan plane crash - 30/01/2025 19:20
Random articles (all categories):
- South Sudan rebel leader says he could return next month - 20/10/2016 11:35
- South Africa-South Sudan Partnership to Take Center Stage at South Sudan Energy Summit - 08/06/2023 07:39
- Exclusive: Sudan cut off from $650 million of international funding after coup - 08/12/2021 06:48
- Arua RDC appeals to South Sudan on EbolaPublish Date: Aug 01, 2012 - New Vision - 02/08/2012 06:43
- Christian Mission for Development - Mid-Year Review, South Sudan, June 2019 - 01/08/2019 03:56
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 68161 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22363 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21559 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 19226 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 19201 times