Authorities in Unity State have denied reports of three dead bodies seen by local residents lying on the ground in Rubkona County in South Sudan’s Unity State on 19-20 March, saying they are not aware of the discovery of the bodies.

State Security Adviser John Malok denied the incident and accused rebel supporters of fabricating the report as propaganda to undermine the government.

“If such a thing happened really, we would have announced it publicly because these people are our citizens,” he told Radio Tamazuj.

However, other sources including local residents indicated that two dead bodies were found near the SPLM office in Rubkona and another dead body was found separately lying on the ground between Sharli Sharli and UNMISS base and then taken to Bentiu hospital.

John Malok, the state security advisor, said, “I am the one in charge of security in the state and I used to update you regularly on what is taking place and the activities being carried out in the state, so I can assure the people that nothing happened at all and nobody was killed.”

In the wake of the reported killings, however, several citizens in Rubkona County expressed grave concern about the deteriorating security situation. The state capital Bentiu and its twin city Rubkona are controlled by South Sudanese forces loyal to President Salva Kiir, but opposition forces are waging an insurgency in the state.

UNMISS, the peacekeeping mission, has a base in Rubkona near to where the bodies were found. The spokesperson of the UN mission, Ariane Quentier, said the peacekeepers received report of the bodies in Rubkona and went to see what happened.

“We went to see that there were indeed bodies,” she told Radio Tamazuj, adding that they then informed authorities about the incident. According to Quentier, one body was found as close as 500 meters from the UN base.

Another UN source indicated that the bodies dumped in the mentioned locations had their throats cut open, and two had their hands tied behind their back.

But the state security official emphasized that rebels are responsible for circulating these lies. He noted the security situation is calm and stable in Unity State.

Malok explained that the state government has implemented a new security plan to provide maximum protection to the citizens. “We have a joint patrol unit at night consisting of all the organized forces so as to provide security to the citizens,” he noted.

Also he said that all the citizens who were previously scattered have been returning back home. With respect to those who are still taking shelter inside UNMISS, they are coup plotters and rebels, according to the government official.

File photo: A scene of Bentiu after the recapture of the city by government forces in mid-January (AP/Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin)