The South Sudanese army has announced its intention to carry out a disarmament operation targeting young men in a northern region where President Salva Kiir recently declared a state of emergency.
The young nation, which gained independence in 2011, continues to suffer from insecurity and widespread poverty despite its oil wealth.
President Kiir declared a six-month state of emergency last week in Warrap State and Mayom County following a surge in violence linked to cattle raids and retaliatory attacks.
Such violence is common in South Sudan, often fueled by water scarcity and disputes over grazing land.
Disarmament Operation
The army has deployed forces to the area to implement the disarmament operation, according to South Sudanese army spokesperson Lul Ruai Koang, who spoke to reporters in the capital, Juba. He said the operation would initially begin on a “voluntary” basis, giving armed youth in the region a “one-week grace period to surrender their weapons voluntarily.”
Koang explained that the army would then proceed with “coordinated and simultaneous forced disarmament operations in Warrap and Mayom County.”
A resident of Tonj North in Warrap State, identified only as Lual for security reasons, said, “There is a lot of violence. People have fled their homes and left their farmlands. Children can’t go to school. There is no food and no shelter because most homes have been burned down.”
He added, “We hear rumors that some have stopped fighting out of fear of the state of emergency or forced disarmament,” but also expressed concern that the army’s campaign might harm “innocent people.”
Hundreds Killed
Earlier this month, the United Nations reported that hundreds of people have been killed since December, estimating that more than 200 were killed in March alone, and 80 in recent days due to escalating communal conflicts in South Sudan related to cattle theft and revenge attacks.
These local conflicts have worsened the overall crisis in South Sudan, which has been plagued by political instability and ethnic violence since gaining independence from Sudan.
