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Tag: White Army

  • White Army Forces in S. Sudan Stand Down, Mostly

    Following more than two weeks of violent conflict that has killed almost 1,000 players and displaced thousands more, the 25,000 man-strong White Army militia has mostly disbanded and returned home, according to a government spokesman for South Sudan.

    Michael Makuei Lueth reported that the White Army, comprised of young men of the Nuer tribe, has been persuaded by Nuer tribal leaders and are beginning to stand down, stating, “They have listened to the reasoning and they have accepted to go back. Not all of them, of course. There are some who are resistant. It’s not clear if they will advance. The number which is left is negligible and they may not be able to proceed.”

    Lueth went on to report that “About 5,000 refused to abandon the march and they have proceeded with their advance on Bor. They then dislodged (government troops) from Mathiang, about 18 miles from Bor.”

    Bor is the capital of the Jonglei State in South Sudan and is a city of much importance. It first started as a city home to Christian missionaries and later became the administrative center for the Dinka tribe, to which current president of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, belongs. Bor was also the center of the Second Sudanese Civil War and Bor massacre in 1991, fighting in which the White Army, led by former Vice President of South Sudan Riek Machar, killed an estimated 2,000 Dinkas directly and led to the death of approximately 25,000 more due to famine and displacement.

    While most of the members of the White Army (so named due to the ash the soldiers spread on their body to ward away insects) have decided to stand down, member-states of the United Nations are still worried, citing perpetual ethnic and tribal conflict in Africa as the cause of said concern: “South Sudan does not need another escalation of the crisis involving armed youth, pitching communities against communities. This can end in a vicious cycle of violence,” stated U.N. Special Representative of the Secretary General Hilde Johnson.

    Fighting in South Sudan started on December 15th when soldiers attacked Juba, the nation’s capital. At the time, many blamed former Vice President Riek Machar for the violence. Machar, who was ousted from the government by President Kiir this summer, denied the allegations, but has since retreated from the city in order to lead opposition forces against the government.

    Due to the severity of the violence thus far, and the fragile state of the globe’s newest nation, the UN and the nations of East Africa have called for a cease fire. Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, is leading the charge for Machar to cease hostilities, stating, “We gave Riek Machar four days to respond (to the ceasefire offer) and if he doesn’t we shall have to go for him, all of us.”

    When asked what he meant by “go for him”, Museveni simply responded, “to defeat him”.

    The four day time limit expires today.

    Image via YouTube

  • White Army in South Sudan – Conflicts Subside

    South Sudan troops are under attack from the ethnic Nuer fighting force known as the “White Army” militia allied with other rebels creating confusion and death in this conflict that began two weeks ago.

    The “White Army” militia was so named because they use ash from burnt cow dung to cover their faces and bodies.

    “Shootings have taken place just outside, to the north of Bor,” Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) spokesman Philip Aguer said by phone from Juba, 190 km (120 miles) south of Bor. Earlier Aguer told Reuters there was fighting in the town.

    Government troops in Bor have been preparing for this extremely feared group, the White Army militia, who was involved in a 1991 massacre of ethnic Dinkas, also in Bor.

    Just these two weeks of fighting has already killed some 1,000 people, and forced nearly 121,000 people from their homes raising panic and fear of an ethnic based civil war.

    “We anticipate a full-scale attack soon. The SPLA forces in Bor town are on maximum alert,” Aguer added. The rebels were pushed out of Bor on December 24 after days of fierce clashes.

    CNN, meanwhile, quoted another government official as saying that she had been negotiating with leaders of the White Army, trying to persuade the force to stop its advance.

    The conflict broke out due to allies of President Salva Kiir who are against Riek Machar. Kiir sacked Machar as vice president in July. Their ethnic backgrounds are a big part of this civil unrest… Kiir is an ethnic Dinka, and Machar comes from the Nuer tribe, where the White Army fighters were drawn.

    South Sudan only gained its independence from Sudan in 2011. The new country is mostly dependent on foreign aid, even though substantial oil reserves in the northern regions should support them.

    Makuei told Reuters on Sunday the White Army militia had dwindled in numbers – from estimated 25,000 strong – after Nuer politicians and tribal elders persuaded them to abandon their march on Bor.

    Image via YouTube