S Sudanese gunmen ambush Uganda-bound buses

JOHANNESBURG – A Ugandan bus driver has been admitted to hospital in the South Sudan capital, Juba, after he was shot by armed gunmen when they ambushed three Kampala-bound buses.

Uganda police spokesman Patrick Jimmy Okema said Takuba Yusuf; the driver of an Eco bus, was shot in the thigh as he attempted to flee from the attackers, Uganda’s Observer newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The attackers, armed with rocket-propelled grenades and other heavy weaponry, laid the ambush at a junction in Jebelen, about 120km from Juba on Monday morning.

After storming the bus the gunmen identified themselves as enemies of the Dinka people fighting to take over the government in South Sudan, the Observer reported.

ANALYSIS: Where next for S Sudan and rebel chief Machar?^[1]

The South Sudanese government forces have been fighting a prolonged civil war against armed supporters of opposition leader Riek Machar^[2]’s Sudanese People’s Liberation Army-In Opposition (SPLA-IO) since a civil war broke out in December 2013.

A lull in the fighting followed 2015’s peace agreement between Kiir and Machar^[3], who belongs to the Nuer tribe, and the latter’s return to Juba in April.

However,  fighting resumed in mid-July^[4] when a shoot-out took place between government forces and Machar’s Nuer supporters, at a roadside outside Juba.

After the passengers had identified themselves as Ugandans, and their passports were confiscated, the gunmen warned the bus driver not to transport Dinkas, further threatening to finish Ugandans off after accusing them of siding with the Dinkas and Kiir.

The attackers then ordered all passengers off the buses, after robbing them of mobile phones, money and other personal belongings. They made them carry all their luggage and cargo to a nearby valley.

During the attack one of the buses was burnt completely, but the armed men failed to set the other two buses alight.

The frightened travellers were then forced to walk 2km to the outskirts of Juba where they were told to remain calm and reassured that they wouldn’t be killed. After their passports were returned they were finally released.

Government soldiers (SPLA) subsequently arrived and evacuated the passengers on light vehicles and to other buses.

The attack comes barely a month after another Eco bus was attacked in Loa, a locality near Pageri in Magwi County, and three people died.

There have been several attacks on buses in South Sudan since the fresh fighting broke out in July.

References

1. ^{^} Where next for S Sudan and rebel chief Machar? (www.enca.com)
2. ^{^} Riek Machar (www.enca.com)
3. ^{^} peace agreement between Kiir and Machar (www.enca.com)
4. ^{^} fighting resumed in mid-July (www.enca.com)