US urges South Sudan President to release Machar from house arrest

WASHINGTON, United States

The United States has called on South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir to release his rival, First Vice-President Riek Machar, from house arrest, urging the country’s leaders to show commitment to peace.

Mr Machar’s party, the SPLM-IO, said on Wednesday that the defence minister and national security chief “forcefully entered” his residence in Juba with an arrest warrant.

A senior SPLM-IO official, Reath Muoch Tang, said in a statement seen by Radio Tamazuj that Mr Machar was being held at home with his wife and two bodyguards. He is accused of involvement in clashes this month between the military and the White Army militia in Upper Nile State.

The US Bureau of African Affairs wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “We are concerned by reports South Sudan’s First Vice-President Machar is under house arrest. We urge President Kiir to reverse this action & prevent further escalation of the situation.”

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South Sudan has five vice-presidents under a 2018 peace deal that ended a five-year civil war between forces loyal to Mr Machar and Mr Kiir. The two rivals now serve in a fragile unity government.

The UN has warned that recent fighting in Nasir between the army and the White Army—a militia historically linked to Machar—along with rising hate speech, could reignite ethnic tensions that fuelled the previous conflict.

Machar’s party denies any current ties to the White Army.

“It is time for South Sudan’s leaders to demonstrate sincerity of stated commitments to peace,” the US Bureau of African Affairs added.

South Sudan’s army and government spokespeople have not yet responded to requests for comment.

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Analysts say the peace deal is on the brink of collapse. The UN mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) urged restraint, warning that the country risks sliding back into widespread conflict.

“This will not only devastate South Sudan but also affect the entire region,” UNMISS said in a statement.

Earlier this month, Kiir’s government arrested several SPLM-IO officials, including the petroleum minister and deputy army chief, following clashes with the White Army in the town of Nasir.