DNK International By Xinhua
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Sunday condemned inflammatory rhetoric and indiscriminate violence against civilians in the country.
Graham Maitland, officer in charge of UNMISS, said the world body was concerned by reports that a South Sudanese senior military leader had urged troops to inflict indiscriminate violence against civilians in Jonglei, where more than 180,000 people have reportedly recently been displaced by conflict.
“Inflammatory rhetoric calling for violence against civilians, including the most vulnerable, is utterly abhorrent and must stop now,” Maitland said in a statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
The statement follows remarks by Johnson Olony, assistant chief of defense forces for mobilization and disarmament and commander of the Agwelek militia, who urged troops to “spare no lives,” including the elderly.
His remarks have sparked immediate alarm among observers in a region with a long history of ethnically driven atrocities.
According to UNMISS, communities in Jonglei and other parts of South Sudan are suffering immense harm from the escalating conflict, including direct military confrontations between forces aligned with the main parties to the peace agreement.
While South Sudan’s leaders continue to reiterate their commitment to peace, hostilities and violations of the ceasefire continue unabated.
Maitland urged the country’s leaders to put the interests of their people first by stopping the fighting and upholding their commitments under the peace agreement.
“This includes returning to consensus-based decision-making, adhering to power-sharing arrangements, and agreeing on a path to peacefully end the transitional period through inclusive dialogue,” Maitland added.
[DNK-International@January 26,2026]
