South Sudan’s government has rejected allegations by the opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) that suspended First Vice-President Riek Machar faces an assassination threat, describing the claims as false and an attempt to undermine his ongoing trial.
Information Minister and government spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny said on Saturday that Machar is under heavy security protection at his residence in the capital, Juba.
“The allegation of the assassination of Dr Riek Machar is totally baseless and false. It is unfounded and intended to discredit the ongoing court proceedings,” Ateny said in a statement.
Ateny said President Salva Kiir had repeatedly demonstrated his commitment to Machar’s safety despite their political rivalry.
“Dr. Riek is being accorded maximum protection by His Excellency the President,” he said. “President Salva Kiir has repeatedly pledged the safety of his political opponents, including Dr. Riek Machar.”
Machar has been under house arrest in Juba since March 2025.
Ateny said Machar’s residence is among the most heavily protected locations in the capital.
“While he is on house arrest in Juba, his house is one of the most protected installations, almost the same way His Excellency the President is protected,” he said.
Ateny said similar allegations had emerged since Machar appeared before the court last year and urged the public to disregard the assassination claims.
“We want to appeal to those who might have come through the allegation by the SPLM-IO to discard this and take it from us as rubbish and completely nonsensical,” he said.
The SPLM-IO was not immediately available for comment.
Security concerns
The government’s denial came a day after Machar’s trial was adjourned until Sept. 23 following security concerns raised by his defence team.
During Friday’s 115th session of the Special Court in Juba, lead defence lawyer Geri Raimondo Legge submitted a written application concerning the safety of the defence team and the eight accused.
“My lord, we have an application to submit. There is a serious threat to the life of the defence and the eight accused persons, especially the fifth accused. It needs serious attention,” Legge told the court.
Machar is the fifth accused in the ongoing court trial.
Presiding Judge James Alala Deng instructed the defence not to read the application in open court, meaning details of the alleged threats were not made public.
The court subsequently adjourned proceedings until Sept. 23, with security concerns raised by the defence among the issues requiring further attention.
Alleged threats
Multiple sources familiar with the matter told Radio Tamazuj that the alleged threats included a plan to cause a road accident involving members of the defence team and a separate allegation that a poisonous substance could be sprayed on seats used by the accused and their lawyers in the courtroom.
Radio Tamazuj could not independently verify the allegations.
One senior source familiar with the matter said the Criminal Investigation Department escorted members of the defence team to court in a security convoy on Friday and returned them afterwards.
Another source alleged that a poisonous substance could be sprayed on seats used by the accused and their lawyers.
The sources said the allegations were being investigated.
The Criminal Investigation Department had also met members of the defence team and offered security escorts and protection on Friday, according to the sources.
Charges against Machar
Machar and seven other defendants are being tried over violence in Nasir, Upper Nile State, in March 2025, when government forces suffered heavy casualties.
They face charges including treason, murder, conspiracy, terrorism, destruction of public property and crimes against humanity.
Prosecutors allege that forces aligned with Machar’s SPLA-IO, together with the White Army militia, killed 257 South Sudan People’s Defence Forces soldiers, including commander General David Majur Dak, during an attack on a military garrison in Nasir.
Prosecutors have also alleged that military equipment worth about $58 million was destroyed or seized during the fighting.
Machar and the other defendants have denied the charges.
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