{"id":49206,"date":"2026-10-27T17:25:31","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T15:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/?p=49206"},"modified":"2026-10-27T17:25:31","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T15:25:31","slug":"special-court-machar-denies-commanding-white-army","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/27\/special-court-machar-denies-commanding-white-army\/","title":{"rendered":"SPECIAL COURT: Machar denies commanding White Army"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Yiep Joseph<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Dr. Riek Machar has denied commanding the White Army, insisting that armed civilian groups operate independently of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement\/Army in Opposition (SPLM\/A-IO).<\/p>\n

Machar made the remarks on Monday during the 124th session of the Special Court on the Incident of Nasir, where he continued presenting his defence against allegations linked to the March 2025 violence in Nasir, Upper Nile State.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn short, I am not the leader of the White Army, whatever they call them. Arrow Boys are there where the IO is; Mayomiji are there wherever the IO is. We do not lead them,\u201d Machar said, according to the SPLM\/A-IO account of the proceedings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe charge that I led armed civilians is false, and the allegation that armed civilians exist only in Nuer areas is also false,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Machar, the fifth accused in the case, argued that the White Army should be understood as a traditional community-based group rather than a conventional military force operating under his command.<\/p>\n

He described its members as largely civilian youths who organise themselves through clan structures and traditional leadership.<\/p>\n

According to Machar, the youths organise at different community levels, including under headmen, sub-chiefs and traditional chiefs, and select or remove their own leaders according to local practices.<\/p>\n

He maintained that the group does not have the formal command structure associated with a standing army and that its members mobilise independently when they believe their communities are under threat.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are not militias, as their structures do not qualify them as such. Instead, they are traditional African village warriors, but with improved armament due to the proliferation of modern small arms,\u201d he told the court.<\/p>\n

Machar further maintained that the White Army is not registered in SPLM\/A-IO military records and does not receive military supplies, logistical assistance or food from the opposition movement.<\/p>\n

He argued that the presence of armed youths within communities does not automatically establish that they operate under his authority or that of the SPLM\/A-IO.<\/p>\n

Machar maintained that his historical political role should not be treated as evidence of a command relationship with armed civilians involved in the Nasir violence in March 2025.<\/p>\n

Beyond the question of command, Machar challenged the investigation into the Nasir violence, claiming that key investigators had not travelled to the area to collect evidence.<\/p>\n

According to his testimony, neither the complainant, the police investigator nor the joint investigation and prosecution committee visited Nasir in connection with the case.<\/p>\n

He questioned whether the investigation had sufficiently examined the circumstances on the ground before conclusions were drawn about responsibility.<\/p>\n

He argued that allegations against him and his co-accused should be assessed through reliable evidence establishing individual responsibility, rather than relying primarily on statements by political leaders or assumptions based on ethnic and political affiliations.<\/p>\n

As part of his defence, Machar also referred to a presidency meeting held on 3 March 2025, following reports of fighting between the South Sudan People\u2019s Defence Forces (SSPDF) and local armed youths in Nasir.<\/p>\n

According to his account, the meeting, chaired by President Salva Kiir Mayardit, produced four resolutions addressing security concerns and efforts to reduce tensions.<\/p>\n

The resolutions concerned the movement of government forces from Malakal to Nasir, de-escalation along the Sobat corridor and in Nasir town, the rescheduling of a National Security Council meeting, and informing the public about the decisions reached.<\/p>\n

Machar said he was asked to continue engaging local chiefs and youth leaders to help reduce tensions.<\/p>\n

He cited the meeting as relevant context for understanding the political and security discussions taking place at the time, disputing allegations that he had misled government officials over arrangements for the movement of forces.<\/p>\n

The case involves Machar and seven other SPLM\/A-IO detainees facing allegations connected to the March 2025 events in Nasir.<\/p>\n

The prosecution\u2019s allegations and the defence\u2019s responses remain subject to judicial examination, with the court expected to assess the evidence and arguments presented by both sides.<\/p>\n

The 124th session ended with proceedings adjourned until Wednesday, 28 October 2026, when Machar is expected to continue presenting his defence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Yiep Joseph Dr. Riek Machar has denied commanding the White Army, insisting that armed civilian groups operate independently of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement\/Army in Opposition (SPLM\/A-IO). Machar made the remarks on Monday during the 124th session of the Special Court on the Incident of Nasir, where he continued[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":48698,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[80,79,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-news","category-politics"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Dr.-Machar-raises-concerns-over-fair-trial-and-challenges-Special-Court-rulings-in-ongoing-case.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49206"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49207,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49206\/revisions\/49207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}