The United States called on South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Thursday to release his rival, First Vice President Riek Machar, following reports that Machar was under house arrest. The US urged South Sudan’s leaders to demonstrate their commitment to peace.
The defense minister and national security head “forcefully entered” Machar’s home and served him with an arrest warrant, according to a report released by Machar’s SPLM-IO party on Wednesday.
Machar was being held at his home with his wife and two bodyguards, according to Mr. Reath Muoch Tang, a top SPLM-IO leader. Machar has been linked to the recent conflict between the White Army and the military in Nasir, Upper Nile State.
The Bureau of African Affairs in Washington posted on X, “We are concerned by reports that South Sudan’s First Vice-President Machar is under house arrest.”
“We urge President Kiir to reverse this action and prevent further escalation of the situation.”
Under the terms of a peace agreement designed to end the 2013-2018 civil war between forces loyal to Machar and those loyal to Kiir, South Sudan has five vice-presidents, with Kiir’s long-time rival Machar currently serving as first vice-president.
The United Nations has issued warnings that recent clashes in Nasir between the army and the White Army—a militia with historical ties to Machar—combined with a surge in hate speech, could reignite the civil war, which ended in 2018, along ethnic lines.
SPLM-IO Denies Ongoing Links With White Army
Machar’s SPLM-IO party has denied any ongoing links with the White Army.
“It is time for South Sudan’s leaders to demonstrate sincerity of stated commitments to peace,” Washington’s Bureau of African Affairs wrote on X.
At the time of reporting, South Sudan’s army and government spokespeople had not responded to requests for comment.
Political analysts suggest that the peace deal, which sees Kiir and Machar serving in a fragile coalition government, is in danger of collapsing.
The UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has called for restraint, stating that the country’s leaders are on the verge of plunging the country back into widespread conflict.
“This will not only devastate South Sudan but also affect the entire region,” UNMISS said in a statement.
Earlier in March, Kiir’s government detained several officials from Machar’s party, including the petroleum minister and the deputy head of the army, in response to the clashes with the White Army in Upper Nile State.
On Wednesday, the UN reported fighting between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar in close proximity to the capital, Juba.
The 2013-2018 civil war, fought largely along ethnic lines, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands in the world’s youngest nation.
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