Explosions and heavy weapons gunfire yesterday shook South Sudan’s capital, Juba, in a fifth day of clashes between government and opposition forces, raising the specter of a return to civil war.
The UN expressed deep alarm over the surge in violence, which has left several hundred people dead.
The current fighting between soldiers loyal to South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, a member of the Dinka tribe, and former rebels backing Vice President Riek Machar, a Nuer, was triggered by a deadly altercation at a checkpoint on Thursday night last week.
Photo: CCTV via AP Video
That was followed by hours of violent confrontations on Friday evening that left at least 150 dead, although local media said 270 were killed.
After a pause on Saturday — South Sudan’s fifth anniversary of independence — battles began in earnest on Sunday morning. They subsided overnight and resumed yesterday, with tanks and helicopter gunships deployed and artillery and mortar fire heard in parts of the city.
A “massive explosion” hit shortly after 9am, followed by further blasts in the Tomping area of Juba, home to embassies, the airport and a UN base, an aid worker said.
“It rings through the whole city every time they fire,” said the aid worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. “I think one of the tanks must be near me, my ears are burning.”
Considerable fighting has centered around the UN base in the Jebel area, where about 30,000 civilians have taken refuge.
The opposition also has a base near Jebel and their leader also has his home there.
Two government helicopters have been bombing areas near the base while ground forces shell the base, including a camp of tens of thousands of displaced civilians, according to a source within the UN compound, who insisted on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
UN peacekeepers have not fired at the troops shelling the base, said the source in the base, who accused soldiers with UN’s blue helmets of abandoning their positions.
Two UN peacekeepers from China were killed at the base on Sunday night, according to Chinese state media.
Several nations have announced plans to evacuate nonessential personnel from Juba.
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