This Week in South Sudan – Week 31

Monday 28 July The South Sudanese government rejected demands for suspension of new oil contracts. Critical food shortage was reported in Jonglei. The South Sudanese government announced that it is ready to resume peace talks with the opposition. The SPLM/A-in-Opposition launched a new membership form to organise its members. Tuesday 29 July The SPLA declared 10 politicians ‘illegal’… Read more »

State Briefing: Unity State

Capital: Bentiu Approximate Population: 585,801 Internally Displaced People (IDP) sheltering in the state: 265,500 While parts of South Sudan have been relatively calm in July, Unity State is still severely insecure.  In the last two weeks the agreement on cessation of hostilities has been violated by clashes between the SPLA and the SPLA-in-Opposition (SPLAiO) in… Read more »

This Week in South Sudan – Week 30

Monday 21 July The South Sudan government accused neighbouring countries of supplying the SPLA-in-Opposition with weapons. The South Sudan government claimed it has regained control over Nasir after the SPLA-in-Opposition attack Sunday. The UN and world leaders condemned the opposition attack on Nasir. Tuesday 22 July Two people were killed by armed men in Nyangkot,… Read more »

Helping or Hindering? The Impact of Civil Society Groups in the Peace Negotiations

South Sudan’s unresolved civil war dampened celebrations on its third Independence Day on 9 July 2014. Despite the urgent need for peace, the negotiation process has yet to yield a resolution. Since the signing of the recommitment to the cessation of hostilities in May 2014, progress has occurred, though with ambiguous outcomes. For example, although… Read more »

This Week in South Sudan – Week 29

Monday 14 July Salva Kiir accused Riek Machar of using ‘spiritual powers’ to mobilise. SPLM/A-in-Opposition claimed they killed 15 government troops who attempted to raid cattle in Unity State. SPLM/A-in-Opposition claimed SPLA launched new attacks in Unity State last weekend. The IGAD official who has been reported calling Machar and Kiir “stupid” claimed he was… Read more »

Introducing State Briefings

Through a series of short briefs on developments at state level since the start of the civil war in 2013, the team behind Monitoring South Sudan hopes to provide a more comprehensive overview of the nature of the conflict and the impact of violence. As always, through the commentary field we encourage our readers to… Read more »

State Briefing: Upper Nile State

Capital: Malakal Approximate population: 964,353  Internally Displaced People (IDP) sheltering in Upper Nile: 194,200 Upper Nile State is situated in the north-east, bordering Ethiopia and Sudan. It is considered a marginalised state, heavily affected by decades of civil war and with poor infrastructure and accessibility (especially in the rainy season). Although imbuing areas around Renk… Read more »

This Week in South Sudan – Week 27

Monday 30 June UN envoy in South Sudan, Hilde Frafjord Johnson, said that the collective leadership in South Sudan must take responsibility for the conflict. Riek Machar defended the call for federalism. South Sudan government officially admitted that international help is needed to avoid collapse. Church leaders and women groups in Unity State announced support for… Read more »