The former Director of Security and Coordination at the Ministry of Petroleum, Maj. Gen. Manasseh Machar Bol Yai has been released from the National Security Service’s Internal Security Bureau (ISB) headquarters in Juba after four months in detention.
Maj. Gen. Machar had been held since February 2026 under circumstances that were never publicly disclosed or officially clarified by the authorities. His release ends months of uncertainty surrounding his status, although it is not yet clear if he was released with conditions.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on behalf of Machar’s family, Engineer Ring Paulino Juk, who also serves as the Secretary-General for the Twic Community in Juba, expressed relief.
“We thank God, first and foremost, for the safety of General Manasseh Machar Bol. We also thank President Kiir Mayardit and his leadership. We are very grateful to everyone who showed concern throughout the sixteen weeks of his detention,” he said. “As a family and as a community, we are happy and appreciate our President. There is not much more we can say right now, but we wish them all the best as they regain their freedom and restore their normal lives.”
Engineer Juk added that the family is hopeful that other detainees will soon regain their freedom, too.
“We are expecting those like Ajiing Deng Ajiing and Dominic Juk to also be released, each depending on the nature of their cases,” he stated. “We believe justice cannot be divided, so we expect all of them to be released soon.”
and then