This Week in South Sudan – Week 28 – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

Monday 6 July

A customs officer was wounded and three freight trucks were torched when armed men attacked the border town of Nimule near Uganda.
Rebecca Garang de Mabior said Salva Kiir removed her as Minister of Roads and Bridges in 2007 after she raised concerns about large, unapproved payments to the Sudanese construction company, Eyat Roads and Bridges, operating in the Bahr al Ghazal region.
SPLA regained control of the Upper Nile state capital, Malakal, barely a week after it fell to the armed opposition forces, the SPLA (IO).

Tuesday 7 July

4 foreigners and 1 South Sudanese were killed by unknown gunmen in the Abyei-Ajok area, close to Rumbek in Lakes state.
South Sudanese rebels under the command of General Dau Aturjong Nyuol attacked Aweil Center County of Northern Bahr el Ghazal state according to reports from the area.

Wednesday 8 July

Al Jazeera, Inside Story: “South Sudan: Political or personal?”
According to a new report by Small Arms Survey, U.N. and AU peacekeepers’ weapons have repeatedly fallen into militants’ hands in Sudan and South Sudan.
Radio Tamazuj overview map: South Sudan cholera outbreak spreads from Juba.
SPLM/A (IO) leader, Riek Machar, admitted his faction never investigated the massacres at the Bentiu mosque and hospital in April 2014, in spite of earlier claims to have done so.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir sworn in for three more years in office by the national legislature.
Riek Machar declared President Salva Kiir illegitimate as of Wednesday, 8 July at midnight, and called on him to step down or face moves to overthrow his regime.
The SPLA (IO) urged the citizens in Nimule town, and other border towns to evacuate from the strategic towns along the South Sudan-Uganda border with immediate effect.

Thursday 9 July

South Sudan’s 4^thIndependence anniversary:
- Voice of America: “A grim Independence Day in Conflict-Ridden South Sudan.”
- UN News: “Four years on, UN marks ‘grim’ independence anniversary amid ongoing conflict.”
- New York Times: “South Sudan’s Fourth Anniversary Offers Little to Celebrate.”
BBC, In Pictures: “Delivering aid to South Sudan.”
According to a new Gallup survey, two in three South Sudanese view the country’s independence positively, despite the ongoing civil war.
In a recent statement, US’ National Security Advisor, Susan Rice criticized the South Sudanese rebels and the government, saying the latter has “squandered its legitimacy” and “subverted democracy.”