Senior rebel commander slams UN human rights report on Bentiu massacre
January 11, 2015 (KAMPALA) – A senior South Sudanese rebel commander has slammed a human rights report that claimed opposition forces were responsible for a massacre in Unity state capital Bentiu in which more than 300 civilians were reportedly killed in mid-April last year.
Major General Koang Chuol Ranley, who is the former Unity state division fourth commander, has disputed the findings of the report, saying the claims were unfounded and that those killed were Sudanese rebels fighting alongside government forces.
Ranley accused the UN and rights groups of relying on hearsay and had failed to conduct in-depth investigations on the ground.
He maintains that those killed were combatants from Sudan’s Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North (SPLA-N) had been present in Unity state alongside government forces loyal to president Salva Kiir and that reports of civilian casualties was “government propaganda” that had been fed to the UN and human rights agencies.
“Yes, the people were killed, but those who were killed belong to the Justice and Equality Movement and we have full evidence that they are Sudanese rebels who were used by the government of Juba to fight us in the area,” he said.
Kiir declared a state of emergency in Unity state in January 2014, with all foreigners working in Bentiu subsequently evacuated.
The rebel faction has accused human rights groups and the UN of bias, saying the agencies had failed to report unlawful killings carried out by government troops when they regained control of the state.
It is also alleged that government forces alongside Sudanese rebels participated in the burning of houses in Guit, Koch, Mayiandit and Leer counties.
In a phone interview with Sudan Tribune, Ranley said the rebel faction was prepared to accept an impartial investigation into claims made by the UN and human rights groups.
The report, released by the human rights division of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) also documents the killing of dozens of people by a mob of armed men who attacked protection-of-civilians site outside Jonglei state capital of Bor two days after the Bentiu massacre.
South Sudan erupted in violence in mid-December 2013 following a political disoute in the country’s ruling party (SPLM).
Oil-rich Unity state has been the scene of repeated clashes between government and rebel forces, changing hands several times throughout the conflict.
(ST)