Four people killed in South Sudan’s Yambio after rebel attack

November 10, 2016 (YAMBIO) – At least four people are killed in Yambio, the capital of Gbudue State, following an attack by armed men on Thursday morning, as hundreds of civilians fled their homes.

Yambio Mayor ,Daniel Badagbu, said, the gunshot erupted on Thursday morning when the armed group came to attack a house belonging to a Government security agent in Hai Kuba area. The assailants killed a young child and injured two others.

However, the attackers were repulsed back by the SPLA forces out of the town.

Two bodies of a teacher and woman were found dead on the road during the hunt of attackers. The Mayor was not certain about who shot them. He said they had been killed by the gunmen or they were killed during a cross fire between the gunmen and the security forces.

However, an eye witness who decline to be identified told Sudan Tribune the armed group left the area quickly after the attack,

“When the SPLA forces reached the scene of the attack they saw the teacher riding his motorbike escaping the fighting. So, a soldier shot him dead and took his motorcycle, while the body of the lady was found not far from the scene,” he said.

The Government of Gbudue State issued a warning to all the armed groups present in the state to reconsider the amnesty given to them.

They are urged to surrender to the authorities or go to the containment area. The two week amnesty period expires on 10th Nov. 2016, the same day of the attack.

The attack has created panic and fear among the residents of Yambio town who continue fleeing their homes to the other side of the town, or crossing the border to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

From New York the UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that following the gunshots some 44 civilians mainly women and children, entered the compound of an NGO located next to the United Nations base.

“Later in the day, the civilians left the compound and returned to their homes,” he said.

The UN Mission provided medical assistance to one injured civilian. The Mission also conducted a patrol into town, where the situation is reported to be calm.”

The security situation remains uncertain and volatile in the area after the expiration of the amnesty given to the rebels.

The fighters of the South Sudan Patriotic Front/Arrow Boys under the command of Alfred Futuyo who joined the SPLA-IO have gone back to the bush.

(ST)