By Chol D. Johnson
Authorities in Twic East County have appealed to the Jonglei State government and national security organs to urgently intervene following an attack on residents in the Ming fishing area.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with No.1 Citizen Daily Newspaper on Monday, Twic East County Commissioner Magok Mabiei Magok called on the government to deploy forces to rescue missing persons and restore security in the area.
“I appeal to Jonglei State security organs and the authorities to intervene and send forces to rescue the missing people on the ground,” Magok said.
According to the commissioner, the attack occurred at around 2:00 a.m. in the Ming fishing area of the Kongor community in Twic East County, Jonglei State.
Magok said information about the incident was obtained from a wounded survivor identified as Barach Awol Barach, who alleged that armed youth from the Hol community of Duk County carried out the attack.
“We only received information from a wounded survivor from Kongor, Barach Awol Barach, who said they were attacked at around 2:00 a.m. by members of the Hol community from Duk County,” he said.
The commissioner added that the survivor was unable to provide information about the fate of the other victims, leaving uncertainty over the number of casualties and missing persons.
Magok said authorities were facing difficulties accessing the area due to insecurity and reports that armed youth had ambushed routes leading to the scene.
“There is no accurate information from the ground because the area remains inaccessible,” he explained.
He appealed to John Chatim to help evacuate armed youth from the area and allow residents of the Kongor community to access their loved ones.
“I appeal to the Duk County commissioner to evacuate the Hol youth and allow the Kongor community access to their loved ones,” Magok said.
The commissioner also claimed that attempts to communicate with the Duk County authorities had not been successful.
“I called the Duk County Commissioner to intervene, and he said he would call me back, but he has not responded since,” he added.
Meanwhile, Abednego Akol Ayoung said police had not yet obtained clear information regarding the incident.
“We did not get clear information about the incident on the ground,” Akol said.
He stated that the matter had been reported to senior national government leadership for intervention, adding that preliminary reports suggested that about 29 people from Twic East County were attacked.
According to Akol, the attack reportedly occurred five days ago, but access to the area remains difficult because of swamps, poor communication networks, and insecurity.
“I spoke to the Twic East County Commissioner, and he told me there is no access because Hol youth have deployed ambushes in the area,” he said.
Akol called on the national government to intervene urgently, noting that the swampy terrain and lack of transport and communication facilities were hindering rescue and security operations.
Separately, Bol Deng Bol, chairperson of the Jonglei Civil Society Organisation Network, also appealed for immediate government action.
“I appeal to the government to intervene as soon as possible to rescue the people on the ground in the Ming area,” Bol said.
He urged the government to facilitate dialogue between the Hol community of Duk County and communities in Twic East County in order to restore peace and prevent further violence.
Bol noted that tensions had resurfaced after security forces previously deployed to the swamp areas withdrew because of logistical and operational challenges.
The conflict between the Hol community of Duk County and communities in Twic East County began early last year over disputed fishing and grazing areas. The violence later spread to the Adhiok and Kongor communities in Twic East County.
Last year, former South Sudan People’s Defence Forces Chief of Defence Forces Paul Nang Majok ordered the evacuation of armed groups from the disputed swamp areas and deployed soldiers to prevent further escalation.
Efforts to reach Duk County Commissioner John Chatim for comment were unsuccessful by press time.