Two injured in Mayiendit attack in Unity State

BENTIU – At least two people are nursing injuries following an attack in Mayiendit County headquarters in South Sudan’s Unity State. Mayiendit local authorities accused armed men from Panyijiar County of perpetrating the attack.

Juong Magok Gatluak, the commissioner of Mayiendit County, told this publication that on Wednesday, armed men from Panyijiar County attacked citizens in Mayiendit. The commissioner added that during the incident, two armed men were injured as the attackers fled.

“I communicated this at the State level to advise the armed youth not to continue attacking us during this flood season,” he said.

“I condemn this act taken by elements of Panyijiar. Also, some people want peace among the community of Mayiendit and Panyijiar County, and as commissioners of these two administrations, we will not accept such a situation in our communities,” he noted.

Magok stated that the two individuals who sustained injuries are being treated at the Rukuach Primary Health Care Unit.

He clarified that the event, which was the second to occur between Panyijiar and Mayiendit, happened over the weekend at around 4 a.m. when the perpetrators, believed to have come from Panyijiar, attacked Mayiendit.

However, attempts to contact Panyijiar County Commissioner Gabriel Majok Bol for comments on the incident were unsuccessful since his phone is unreachable.

Last month, armed youth from Panyijiar County allegedly attacked the people building the dyke in Mayiendit.

The group attempted to prevent the water from flowing through their location to other spots where people were sheltering, but their attempts were impeded.

In 2019, a week-long peace conference was conducted between the towns of Mayiendit in Southern Liech and opposition-controlled Panyinjiar, with pleas for peaceful coexistence between the feuding neighbours.

The meeting held in Leer resolved to form a joint security force of the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO) that will patrol hot-spot areas that are affected by revenge killings and cattle raids.

The two sides agreed to form a joint court to try all criminal cases.

The event was organised by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) Civil Affairs Division in Bentiu. The event brought together about 80 participants, including community leaders, women, government officials, youth, and military representatives from both the government and the SPLA-IO forces.