By William Madouk
The South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) says it is still holding its military position in Bari, Mundri West County, Western Equatoria State, following an attack blamed on SPLA-IO opposition forces.
SSPDF spokesperson Major General Lul Ruai said two government soldiers were wounded during the attack but suffered no life-threatening injuries. His statement comes after reports circulated that opposition forces under General Alfred Futuyo Karaba had captured the Bari military barracks.
Ruai, however, denied that government forces had lost control of the position, saying soldiers remained at their base and continued their normal activities. “We are maintaining our positions, and in the defense of Bari, two servicemen were shot and wounded. But there are non-life-threatening injuries,” Ruai said.
According to Ruai, the military command informed him that the attack happened at around 5 p.m.
“I was told by the command that at around 5 in the evening, a military outpost at a place called Bari, in Bari, Boma, Kotobi, Payam, Mundri West County in Western Equatoria was attacked by SPLA-IO rebels,” he said.
No confirmation of rebel casualties
The SSPDF spokesperson said the army had not confirmed whether opposition fighters were killed or wounded during the clash.
He said troops searched the battlefield after the fighting but found no bodies belonging to the rebels. “We did not find any bodies of the rebels on the ground after the battlefield searches,” Ruai said.
He added that the army had found no evidence confirming that the opposition fighters had sustained injuries. However, his account did not independently establish the full extent of the fighting or the casualties suffered by either side.
On reports that SPLA-IO forces had captured the barracks, Ruai challenged journalists to verify the claims independently. “If you have your contacts, you get in touch with the local population in that area,” he said.
SSPDF blames opposition divisions
Beyond the fighting in Bari, Ruai said the SSPDF remained committed to its peace message towards the opposition but accused the SPLA-IO of being divided among competing leaders. He said the divisions had made it difficult for the government to engage the group through a single command structure.
“The problem is that the SPLA-IO is partly divided. They are operating on their own,” Ruai said.
He claimed that different groups within the opposition movement had declared allegiance to the detained former First Vice-President Riek Machar, Oyet Nathaniel Pierino and SPLM-IO Secretary-General Regina Joseph Kapa.
“There are SPLA-IO that say they are loyal to the detained former vice-president. There are SPLA-IO that say they are loyal to Oyet. And other SPLA-IO that say they are loyal to Regina, the SG for SPLA-IO. And others, we do not know their affiliation,” he said.
Ruai argued that the alleged divisions were complicating peace efforts and military engagement. “So it is very difficult to deal with the rebel group that has no central command or centralized command,” he added.
The attack in Bari highlights continuing security tensions in parts of South Sudan. However, the opposition’s account of the incident, its reported casualties, and the claim that its forces captured the military position were not independently verified in Ruai’s remarks. An official response from the SPLM-IO was not available at the time of writing.