Riek Machar, South Sudan’s ex-First Vice President-turned-rebel leader was denied entry into Khartoum airport in Sudan, a military spokesman for his rebel group confirmed to Anadolu Agency Tuesday.
“Our chairman attempted to go to Sudan but he was barred from traveling and told to return back to South Africa,” Col. Dickson Gatluak spokesman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) told Anadolu Agency.
Machar who has been receiving treatment in South Africa, traveled to Sudan via Ethiopia on Sunday but was barred from entering the country and forced to return to Johannesburg on Monday.
“It’s true, we can confirm that Machar is back in South Africa,” Clayson Monyela, spokesman for South Africa’s Foreign Affairs Ministry told Anadolu Agency Tuesday.
He added South Africa was committed to finding solutions to the South Sudan conflict.
Commentators have expressed surprise that Sudan, widely viewed as a backer of Machar, had barred him from entering the country.
Last week, the U.S. proposed that Machar, South Sudan’s army chief Paul Malong and Information Minister Michael Makuei face sanctions for fueling the conflict in the world’s youngest nation.
The proposal would see Machar and others face a travel ban and an asset freeze.
Gatluak the SPLM-IO spokesman, said he did not believe that blocking Machar from traveling will resolve the current crisis in South Sudan.
“This unceremonious treatment that we never expected from the region cannot bring peace to South Sudan; any hard approach taken against one peace partner can only intensify the war,” he said.
The war between South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir’s mostly ethnic Dinka forces and the rival Nuer led by Machar ran from December 2013 until a peace deal was reached in August last year.
In April, Machar returned to Juba to join a unity government led by Kiir but after fighting broke out between their factions in July he fled the country and was replaced by Taban Deng as first vice president.
Tens of thousands of people were killed and more than two million were displaced during the violence.
Newer articles:
- South Sudanese Flee One of Country’s Last Peaceful Towns - 23/11/2016 11:27
- South Sudan Rebels ‘Burned Civilians Alive:’ HRW - 23/11/2016 05:07
- South Sudan rebels deny leader Riek Machar arrested in Ethiopia and deported back to South Africa - 23/11/2016 04:08
- South Sudan: New abuse of civilians by both sides - 23/11/2016 01:53
- South Sudan spies feared to have infiltrated refugee camps in Adjumani - 22/11/2016 08:31
Older news items
- World 'must commit to ending South Sudan war' as violence continues and hunger looms - 21/11/2016 08:18
- This Is No Way To Honour Kenya's Contribution To Peace In South Sudan - 21/11/2016 06:39
- Japanese peacekeepers arrive in South Sudan with new mandate - 21/11/2016 05:20
- South Sudan refugee crisis: New camp opened in West Nile - 21/11/2016 03:14
- South Sudan: Priest feeds 4,000 refugees - 19/11/2016 16:00
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):
- Anti-African street violence surges in Israel - Chicago Tribune - 24/05/2012 10:15
- South Sudan accused of threatening aid groups - 24/10/2014 16:13
- Aussie citizen Manyang Maker Tulbatortured in South Sudan - The Daily Telegraph - 13/03/2013 09:15
- Cracks in North-South Peace Deal - 25/06/2008 18:17
- Girls, not guns: The promise of progress for South Sudan - WNN - Women News Network - 19/09/2012 18:46
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 68993 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22366 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21568 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 19271 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 19214 times