Five abductees, including a little girl, were released in Rumamer County, Abyei, according to authorities from the Abyei Area and Twic County in Warrap State.

 The victims, who were taken by suspected armed youth from Twic County, were freed on Tuesday and received by the Abyei administration.

Official sources report that four women and one little girl were abducted by armed youth from Twic, allegedly supported by forces loyal to General Gai Machiek residing in Ajakuac Payam, Twic County.

The South Sudan People Defense Force (SSPDF) and the United Nations Interim Security in Abyei (UNISFA) collaborated to rescue the abductees.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday, Bulis Koch, the Information Minister of Abyei, expressed gratitude to the Warrap authorities, SSPDF, and UNISFA for their collaborative efforts in rescuing the victims. He highlighted that there has been a week of reduced insecurity along the border.

“There has been no conflict along the border for almost a week. What occurred was the abduction of four women and a little girl, who were held for a few days by armed youth from Twic, especially those loyal to Gai Machiek, the general residing in Ajakuac Payam, Twic County. With the joint efforts of UNISFA, SSPDF, and Twic county authorities, they were successfully released,” Koch said.

“The abductees were released yesterday, Tuesday, and handed over to the Abyei government in Rumamer County. This positive development is a significant step toward fostering peace at the borders between the Abyei area and the Warrap state government,” he added.

Koch emphasized that conflicts impede developmental activities in the Abyei area. He explained, “Conflict has halted developmental activities in the Abyei area. Insecurity escalated from the end of last year to January first. As a response, the president of South Sudan summoned four governors, including the Abyei Chief Administrator, to inquire about the security situation in the Bahr el Ghazal region.”

For part, Simon Aguek, Twic County Commissioner, confirmed the release of the abducted women. “The abducted women we discussed earlier were released on Tuesday to Rumamer County in Abyei. The SSPDF commander in Aneet informed me about this, but the details of the abductors remain unclear. In reality, four women and a girl were successfully released,” he said.

Deadly violence is common in the Abyei region, where Twic Dinka from Twic County in Warrap State are locked in a dispute with Ngok Dinka from Abyei over the location of an administrative boundary.

The oil-rich Abyei region is also claimed by both Sudan and South Sudan. The two countries have yet to agree on the border mapping since South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011.

The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) was deployed in June 2011 to protect civilians under the imminent threat of physical violence.

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