Unilateral ceasefire declared in South Sudan

JUBA: South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has declared a unilateral ceasefire across the country after he launched a national dialogue that seeks to unify and stabilise the war-torn east African nation.

The declaration on Monday came less than a week after Kiir said it remained difficult to enforce a ceasefire due to regular violations by armed groups amid increasing pressure from the international community demanding an end to the civil war that is now approaching its fourth year.

The South Sudanese leader said the ceasefire sought to create a conducive environment for the just-started national dialogue, and also allow safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid.

“I declare a unilateral ceasefire effective from today (Monday), and I have instructed the SPLA (Sudan People’s Liberation Army) command to immediately observe this in their defensive positions,” Kiir said.

Last month, the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, a body tasked with monitoring South Sudan’s peace agreement, warned that an increasing hunger crisis and escalation in violence had undermined all efforts to make peace in the war-torn east African nation.

South Sudan analysts expressed scepticism that Kiir’s announcement would lead to long-lasting peace.

Kiir had declared ceasefires before and he had yet to release any political prisoners, said Alan Boswell, a South Sudan expert.

Kiir’s speech offered no hint that he was willing to negotiate with the disparate rebel groups, the largest of which is led by Machar, Boswell said. Machar is an ethnic Nuer while Kiir is a Dinka.

In April last year, Western nations backed a peace accord that saw Machar return to the capital and again share power with Kiir. But the deal fell apart less than three months later and Machar and his supporters fled the capital, pursued by helicopter gunships.