SPLA-IO fighters attack military escorting IDPs in S. South’s Wau: official
September 25, 2018 (WAU) – Wau State government official has strongly condemned an SPLM-IO attack on a military convoy escorting Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their home area in Besselia County, out.
Speaking to the media in Wau on Tuesday morning, the State Minister for Local Government, Law Enforcement Agencies and Parliamentary Affairs, Arkangelo Anayar Anyar condemned the attack which he blamed on the rebels.
“The ambush occurred yesterday at 2:00 pm when the SPLA-IO fighters attacked the SPLA soldiers escorting over 200 vulnerable people to Mboro Payam,” said Minister Anyar Anyar.
The humanitarian convoy was the first batch of IDPs who voluntarily decided to return to their home area Mboro Payam of Bessilia after living in the UNMISS Protection of Civilians (PoC) site in Wau for several years.
The IDPs left the camp on Monday afternoon.
The minister further said on soldier has been killed while six others were wounded and now are receiving medical treatment at the hospital.
He described the attack as a violation to the recently signed revitalized peace agreement signed and called on the peace monitoring body and UNMISS to investigate the incident.
The is the six attack since the 12 September and the first on in Wau. The previous reports of alleged attacks emanated from Southern Liech and Yei River states.
The SPLM-IO did not issue a statement on the attack.
The repeated clashes in Besselia between the government forces and the fighters of the armed opposition group forced the civilians to flee the area in 2016.
(ST)
