S.Sudan: Disarmament starts in violence-prone capital

By Parach Mach

JUBA, South Sudan (AA) - The South Sudanese government has embarked on a disarmament campaign in the volatile capital in a bid to recover illegal weapons and boost security, said an army spokesman Friday.

This directive comes in the wake of escalating insecurity and rampant killings and clashes between government forces and armed bandits at night in Juba, which have led to the deaths of thousands of people since Dec. 2013.

“The Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) with other members of organized forces have begun an operation of collecting illegal firearms from civilians in Juba,” Col. Dominic Santos, the acting army spokesperson, told Anadolu Agency.

Dominic said they believe there is a huge amount of illegal firearms in the wrong hands in the city, which has seen a rise in robberies and attacks from armed bandits.

He said the army will not hesitate to use "necessary force" if necessary.

He added, “So far we have confiscated 47 AK-47s and pistols from civilians. We have not yet found any heavy weapons in already-searched areas,” and predicted that the operation “can maintain security in Juba.”

“Those authorized to carry firearms such as members of Parliament and top businessmen will show their licenses as proof of legitimate possession.”

South Sudan, the world’s youngest nation, has long been plagued by ethnic tensions and conflict made exceptionally deadly due to the easy availability of arms left over from a two-decade civil war that ended in 2011 with independence from Sudan.

The East African country has been rocked by three years of civil war when a long-running political feud between President Salva Kiir and his sacked deputy Riek Machar exploded into violence in Dec. 2013.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed and another 2.4 million people displaced from their homes in a war characterized by human rights abuses.