JUBA Supporters of South Sudanese opposition leader Riek Machar have released pictures showing him in apparent good health, more than a month after he fled fierce fighting in the capital, Juba, in which he was reported to have been wounded.Hundreds of people were killed in the battles that broke out in the world's youngest nation in July as troops loyal to Machar and President Salva Kiir, his long-time political foe, fought each other using tanks, artillery and helicopters.After withdrawing from the capital, Machar's whereabouts and condition remained unknown for several weeks until the United Nations said it had picked him up in neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo with a leg injury.He later traveled to Sudan for medical treatment. On Thursday two images posted online by supporters of Machar's SPLM-IO party showed him smiling and sitting in a chair, next to his wife and several senior party officials.It was not clear where the pictures were taken, and neither of them showed all his legs.Nevertheless, some of his supporters in South Sudan said it was a relief to know he was fine. "Dr. Machar is very well and sound," Gatdiet Peter, who had viewed the images, told Reuters in Juba.Kiir, a Dinka, sacked Machar, a Nuer, from his post as vice president after the July fighting and has since replaced him. A similar move triggered South Sudan's first civil war which erupted in December 2013 and lasted about two years until a peace deal was signed in August 2015. Following the peace pact, Machar returned to Juba in April and was re-appointed as vice president before fighting resumed in July and triggered his second removal from the post.The unrest in South Sudan has alarmed the west and U.N. amid fears it could be plunged into protracted instability. A U.N. Security Council delegation arrived in the country on Friday to discuss with Kiir ways to "improve the security and humanitarian situation" and plans to deploy a 4,000-strong regional protection force. (Writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Ed Cropley and Toby Chopra)
Newer articles:
- Displaced South Sudanese appeal to UN to urgently send more troops - 03/09/2016 15:15
- Security Council urges South Sudan to accept 'protection force' - 03/09/2016 14:52
- Address rape victims of South Sudan hotel rampage, US says - 03/09/2016 13:07
- S. Sudan religious chiefs call for protection force - 03/09/2016 06:06
- UN delegation in S.Sudan to push for protection force - 03/09/2016 04:03
Older news items
- South Sudan religious leaders call for protection force - 02/09/2016 22:11
- U.N. council in S.Sudan to press govt to cooperate or face arms embargo - 02/09/2016 14:33
- In South Sudan, UN struggles (again) with how to protect civilians - 02/09/2016 07:37
- US denounces South Sudan child soldier recruitment - 31/08/2016 10:58
- South Sudan court martials 60 soldiers - 31/08/2016 01:16
Latest news items (all categories):
- Ramaphosa presses Kiir to implement peace deal ahead of South Sudan’s first elections - 09/10/2026 12:19
- South Sudan steps up Ebola alert after Kenya case - 09/10/2026 12:17
- Laotian man deported by U.S. to South Sudan leaves for Laos after year in detention - 09/10/2026 12:14
- Bullet and blast injuries … and a constant need for blood: inside South Sudan’s overwhelmed trauma wards - 09/10/2026 12:10
- MTN South Sudan and Regulator Pledge Cooperation to Expand Connectivity - 09/10/2026 12:01
Random articles (all categories):
- Sudan: President Al-Bashir - Sudan Is Guarded By Its People - 15/01/2019 01:33
- السودان يشكو الإمارات أمام محكمة العدل الدولية على خلفية "التواطؤ في إبادة جماعية" وأبوظبي تندد - 07/03/2025 15:14
- South Sudan's new 500 pound note unlikely to stem inflation - 12/06/2018 08:03
- Salva Kiir Press conference in Juba - 02/06/2011 01:00
- US Gives South Sudan Government $8M to Fight COVID-19 - 31/03/2020 01:12
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 150820 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 28204 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 25312 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 24537 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 22500 times
