Border clash between Ugandan, South Sudanese troops kills at least four

It is not wide what triggered the warring though sections of the borderline person agelong been contested.

At slightest 4 members of the South Sudanese information forces person been killed successful warring with the Ugandan service adjacent the countries’ shared border, according to section officials, arsenic tensions flare implicit disputed borderline demarcations.

Three South Sudanese soldiers were changeable dormant connected Monday by Ugandan forces who retaliated aft 1 of their soldiers was killed, Major General Felix Kulayigye, spokesperson for the Ugandan military, said connected Wednesday. But Wani Jackson Mule, a section authoritative successful South Sudan’s Central Equatoria state, said helium received the bodies of 5 soldiers.

Uganda has a past of engagement successful South Sudan and has agelong provided subject enactment to President Salva Kiir, including a deployment of peculiar forces since March.

A spokesperson for South Sudan’s military, Major General Lul Ruai Koang, said connected Wednesday that subject leaders from South Sudan and Uganda person agreed to an contiguous ceasefire to alteration an probe of the latest borderline clash.

A connection from section authorities quoted section South Sudan service commandant Henry Buri arsenic saying the Ugandan forces “were heavy equipped with tanks and artilleries” and targeted 19 “joint operation” forces. There was nary remark from the Ugandan government.

An earlier connection by section region officials said determination had been “loss of lives and injuries from some sides”.

It was not wide what triggered the warring connected Monday that South Sudan says occurred successful Central Equatoria.

The clashes reportedly occurred successful a distant portion of northwestern Uganda known arsenic West Nile erstwhile South Sudanese soldiers crossed into Ugandan territory, acceptable up campy and refused to leave, according to Kulayigye. “We had to use force.”

But determination are opposing narratives.

Mule described the firefight arsenic a “surprise attack” by Ugandan forces successful territory South Sudan considers to prevarication wrong its land. Sections of the Uganda-South Sudan borderline person been contested for years.

Leaders from the 2 countries person acceptable up a associated borderline demarcation committee whose enactment is ongoing, Kulayigye said. Officials from some countries person antecedently said they expect to scope a steadfast determination successful 2027.

Although determination person been sporadic borderline clashes implicit the years, an speech of occurrence betwixt the subject allies is rare.

Uganda sent troops to enactment Kiir erstwhile civilian warfare broke retired successful South Sudan successful 2013, 2 years aft it gained independency from Sudan.

The civilian warfare betwixt Kiir and his longtime rival Riek Machar lasted 5 years and killed astir 400,000 radical earlier a power-sharing statement was reached successful 2018.

Uganda again deployed peculiar forces successful March this twelvemonth arsenic Kiir moved erstwhile again against Machar, yet placing him nether location apprehension and stoking fears of a renewed civilian war.

That has each but buried the power-sharing woody and triggered struggle betwixt the service and members of a militia from Machar’s Nuer taste community.

The Ugandan service has been accused of utilizing chemic weapons, namely tube bombs containing a flammable liquid that has killed civilians, against Nuer militias successful South Sudan’s northeast – accusations Uganda has denied.