Pope Francis attends an audience with the President of South Sudan Salva Kiir at the Vatican, March 16, 2019. Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS
The “leaders of South Sudan” are to visit the Vatican next week, a spokesman said Wednesday.
Media reports said arch-rivals President Salva Kiir and rebel leader and former vice president Riek Machar were expected to be at the Vatican on April 9 and 10.
“I can affirm that scheduled next week in the Vatican is a spiritual retreat for the leaders of South Sudan,” Vatican spokesman Alessandro Gisotti said.
South Sudan country was born in a blaze of optimism in 2011 after it gained independence from Sudan.
But rivalry between Kiir and Machar unleashed a civil war in 2013 characterised by brutal violence, rape and UN warnings about ethnic cleansing.
More than 380,000 people have died and four million people have fled their homes.
In 2015, a peace deal brought Machar back as vice president, but it fell apart the following year and he fled the country.
Machar is planning to return next month under a peace agreement signed in Addis Ababa last September, but the process has been overshadowed by fears of insecurity and lack of preparation.
Pope Francis has repeatedly voiced concern for South Sudan.
He granted an audience to Kiir last month and afterwards said he hoped to visit the country to “encourage the peace process.”
Newer articles:
- South Sudan, where a water crisis is leading to child kidnappings and rape - 04/04/2019 07:53
- South Sudan set for multi-sector investment roadshow - 04/04/2019 04:28
- South Sudan Partners With UNDP To Promote Human Rights, Peace - 04/04/2019 00:45
- Porous Uganda-South Sudan border cripples livestock farming - 03/04/2019 21:34
- South Sudan’s Lafon youth condemn killings of civilians by Pari community - 03/04/2019 14:03
Older news items
- South Sudan holds breath as fragile peace faces crucial test - 03/04/2019 01:51
- South Sudan Suspends Arabic Newspaper - 02/04/2019 18:15
- Uganda: MPs Want to Meet South Sudan Government Over Compensation - 02/04/2019 10:04
- Chinese firm to start building major roads in South Sudan - 02/04/2019 07:21
- In South Sudan, aid groups brace for returnee uncertainty - 02/04/2019 05:58
Latest news items (all categories):
- Call For Restraint Within the SPLA-IO - 18/09/2026 14:50
- Pinglu Canal: From a shorter route to closer China - ASEAN ties - 18/09/2026 14:20
- Nuclear Realism and Japan’s Choice: The Comparative Limitations of the Saudi Model and the Justification for Independent Nuclear Armament under a "Three-Front Nuclear Threat" - 18/09/2026 14:05
- South Sudan 2026 Elections: Bill Before Parliament Keeps Salva Kiir in Office - 18/09/2026 13:55
- At least 26 killed in South Sudan tribal clashes - 18/09/2026 13:49
Random articles (all categories):
- South Sudan News: Tens of Thousands of Refugees Return Home - 16/08/2013 00:44
- How thousands of innocent souls perished on the barges - 08/09/2015 14:13
- With new negotiations, South Sudanese warily hope for a 'peace' they can see - 30/08/2018 13:51
- Why the UN Security Council should not lift the South Sudan arms embargo - 01/02/2023 04:13
- Moral Striving for Distant glory - 24/09/2008 08:14
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 149638 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 28117 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 25198 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 24466 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 22417 times
