South Sudan: New rebel group formed in Northern Bahr el Ghazal state
Officers from the armed opposition faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Opposition in Northern Bahr el Ghazal state have defected and formed their own faction.
The officers previously under the overall leadership of the First Vice-President, Riek Machar, have asserted that the 2015 peace agreement signed with president Salva Kiir, has not addressed the cause of the war.
The group is yet to announce the name of their faction and under whose leadership and the objective of the war they have declared to pursue.
An armed man identifying himself as Colonel James Deng Mayar told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday that they have announced a peaceful split from the armed opposition forces under the overall command of General Dau Aturjong, who allied himself and his forces to the First Vice President, Riek Machar.
The group, according to Mayar, has decided to join rank with brigadier General Agany Ayiii, one of the government officers who changed allegiance and joined General Peter Gatdet Yak, one of the senior rebel commanders, who defected from the rebel faction under Machar.