South Sudanese forces attacked a rebel base in Bentiu a town in the North of the country, on Tuesday, according to Major Dickson Gatluak a spokesperson for the opposition forces. The rebels, who are loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar against the government led by President Salva Kiir, pledged a swift response.
South Sudan, one of the world’s newest states since its formal independence from the North, in 2011, has been scarred by civil war that began in 2013. Though since 2015 both sides have formally observed a precarious peace while fighting has continued on the margins.
Machar, who fled the country in July, has order his forces to prepare for a new armed campaign against the government.
James Gatdet Dak – a spokesman for Macher – told Reuters in Nairobi on Tuesday that “Our forces will be taking quick action against the regime in Juba,”
The government in Juba, the capital, has pleaded with nearby states to help prevent a further descent into war.