Out of the 17 Sudan Armed Forces soldiers captured last month by the SPLA for suspected raids

JUBA (16 Nov) – Out of the 17 Sudan Armed Forces soldiers captured last month by the SPLA for suspected raids in Gumbo, six are officially recognised as part of the Joint Integrated Units.
On 19 October in the early morning, 17 Sudan Armed Forces [SAF] soldiers were captured in Gumbo after an exchange of fire with the SPLA. During their preliminary investigation, SPLA military intelligence reports that six of those captured are part of the Joint Integrated Units [JIU] at Maridi Bridge while the remainder are mostly former members of the Equatoria Defence Force, an SAF-aligned militia.

As stipulated in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement [CPA], the Joint Integrated Units are made up of SPLA and SAF soldiers and are meant to uphold the peace agreement by working in partnership. Instead, SPLA military intelligence and the United Nations Mission in Sudan [UNMIS] confirm that six JIU soldiers are suspected for involvement in raids around Gumbo and roads connecting to Juba town.

Under police custody
The 17 suspects captured are now under the custody of the police waiting a court hearing. “Those SAF captured were identified and confessed that they are JIU, they could not deny because they were caught red handed during the battle --they have to face the charges,” states James Wani Igga in an interview with the The Juba Post yesterday in his office. According to the Speaker, many members of the public called for a public execution of the captured suspects but the Government of Southern Sudan decided to hand them over to the local authorities. In addition, a special JIU committee comprising of SPLA and SAF members has been set up to investigate the situation.

According to intelligence reportsthese SAF-aligned armed groups are responsible for the lives of 75 civilians in Central and Eastern Equatoria States after conducting repeated roadside ambushes. The report reads that victims who have escaped the ongoing road ambushes along Juba-Torit, Juba-Nimule and Juba-Bor roads; state that the attackers wore SAF green uniforms. Last Monday, four armed men in military uniforms and armed with AK-47s, hijacked a US Consular vehicle at 3pm and forced the driver to take them to Gumbo village.

The military intelligence report indicates that 11 of the 17 captured suspects are from Eastern Equatoria tribes including: Lotuko, Lokoya, Lango, Lulubo, Acholi and Bari. All members of this groups are fluent in Acholi language and SPLA officials speculate that many earlier attacks attributed to the Lord’s Resistance Army [LRA] may have been perpetrated by this SAF-alighned force.

The report concludes that “these activities are organised by a well-rooted body aiming at [the] destruction of the CPA (Comprehensive Peace Agreement). LRA are currently in Juba negotiating a peaceful settlement of their political problem in Uganda. They can not make a mistake of committing such atrocities while already their leaders are wanted in the International Criminal Court and while in Juba the fate of their negotiation team is at the mercy of the Government of Southern Sudan / SPLM.”

Another intelligence source believes the attacks by these armed groups are politically motivated. The report suggests that the attacks were designed to cut Juba off from trade routes, undermine the SPLA’s support for the United Nations’ plans for intervention in Darfur and disrupt the LRA – Uganda peace talks. Speaker of the Legislative Assembly James Wani adds that, according to the CPA and the Constitution of Sudan and Southern Sudan, all militia forces must choose to either join the SAF or SPLA.

If these armed groups claim to be part of the central government “then we shall raise this issue up with the government in Khartoum and ask them why are they still supporting militia groups. In fact, our President Salva Kiir has raised this matter to the Khartoum authorities and asked them why are they are giving support to the other armed groups,” Wani says. The Speaker also asks civilians to stop supporting these armed groups or else “we can even raise the issue to the people observing the CPA because this is a violation of the CPA.”

According to SPLA and UNMIS reports, Juba-Torit road is now fully deployed with soldiers protecting the area while Juba-Nimule and Juba-Bor roads are still in progress of attaining a full protection force.