At least one person was killed and three others wounded, while hundreds fled their homes after clashes erupted on Wednesday in Raat, a disputed border town in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA), local officials said.
The fighting comes amid heightened tensions between the Anyuak and Murle communities over ownership of the gold-rich town on the South Sudan-Ethiopia border. It also follows reports by the local Anyuak king of an alleged attempt on his life.
Gideon Omot, commissioner of Pochalla South County, told Radio Tamazuj that armed Murle youth attacked a South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) base in Raat on Wednesday afternoon, triggering the violence.
“According to information we received, the fighting started after armed Murle youth attacked the SSPDF base in Raat,” Omot said.
He said tensions had already been running high after an SSPDF soldier reportedly went missing while collecting firewood.
“After the tensions over the missing soldier, we do not know what exactly prompted the Murle youth to attack the SSPDF base and Anyuak positions,” he said.
Omot condemned the violence and said most civilians had fled across the border into Ethiopia, where they urgently required humanitarian assistance.
SSPDF commander Gen. Arobo Deng confirmed the fighting and said calm had been restored after government forces repelled the attack.
“The fighting started at the army base after it was attacked by an armed Murle youth group and quickly spread to residential areas involving Anyuak youth,” Deng said.
He added that the motive for the attack remained unclear but noted that an SSPDF officer had been killed a day earlier while collecting firewood in nearby bushland.
However, GPAA Information Minister Jacob Werchum Jouk disputed that account, saying the violence began when Murle residents came under attack from SSPDF personnel and armed Anyuak youth.
“Some elements from the SSPDF and armed Anyuak youth attacked Murle residents in Raat, resulting in massive displacement,” Jouk said.
He said Murle civilians had fled towards Nyat in Jebel Boma County and that casualty figures remained unclear because many displaced residents had yet to be accounted for.
Anyuak King Gilo Okwanga Gilo renewed calls for a government investigation, saying he had repeatedly warned authorities about escalating tensions in the area.
“This is the third time I am publicly appealing for government intervention after tensions continued to build,” he said. “My people were killed yesterday, several have been displaced, and others are still missing.”
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