South Sudan returnees finally arrive
UGANDANS who were rescued from South Sudan, have finally arrived.
The returnees that were escorted by Uganda Peoples’ Defence forces are now at Central police station (CPS) where their relatives are to pick them before they go to their homes.
The heavily-armed Ugandan military convoy crossed into South Sudan on Thursday to evacuate the over 5000,trapped Uganda citizen in the capital Juba as fears persist that days of fierce fighting might reignite despite a ceasefire.
The United Nations has warned of tension and the possibility of fresh fighting in Juba, where a ceasefire has held since late Monday.
President Salva Kiir on Thursday called on arch-rival Riek Machar to meet for talks to salvage peace. “I don’t want any more bloodshed in South Sudan,” Kiir said.
Uganda’s army chief Brigadier Leopold Kyanda said the mission involving 2,000 soldiers would likely last “two to three days” but an intelligence officer said some Ugandan troops may remain in Juba.
“Why not? We have the capacity to support the government of South Sudan and we were there before,” said the plain-clothed officer accompanying the convoy.
The Ugandan army joined the conflict in South Sudan soon after it began in December 2013, fighting on Kiir’s side against a rebel force led by Machar, now the country’s vice president. The troops only pulled-out late last year.
Four days of intense battles in the capital left hundreds dead and forced around 40,000 to flee their homes. Aid agencies are warning of a worsening humanitarian crisis with a lack of both water and food.
The recent violence in the capital echoed the fighting that triggered the civil war and marks a fresh blow to last year’s deal to end the bitter conflict that began when Kiir accused Machar of plotting a coup.
Kiir is a member of the Dinka tribe, while Machar is a Nuer, and the dispute has split the country along ethnic lines and caused tens of thousands of deaths.
The evacuation mission also saw attack on the UPDF convoy going to South Sudan on Thursday to evacuate stranded Ugandans.
According to sources, they attacked the last vehicle in the convoy but UPDF soldiers jumped out of the vehicles and chased the attackers until they were captured.
On arrest, the Ugandan army realized they were SPLA soldiers under Salva Kiir but who were taken to Bilphpam military headquarters.
