South Sudan President Salva Kiir has called for calm and a spirit of forgiveness.
Kiir, pleaded with parents and relatives who have lost loved ones in tragic incidents that have engulfed the country to avoid revenge but pray for peace to return to South Sudan according to a report by URN.
“I want everybody to remain calm. Nobody should take law into their hands to go and revenge, it is not time for revenging; it is time for forgiveness even if we get those who have killed people. We will still forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing,” Kiir said.
President Kiir was making reference to recent ambushes on several commercial vehicles along the Nimule-Juba and Yei-Juba roads.
The attackers mounted an ambush at a junction in Jebelen, about 120km from South Sudan capital, Juba on Monday morning.
The first bus that entered the ambush was a Gateway bus registration number UAM 216V. The attack also involved a Friendship bus registration UAU 240F and Eco bus registration number SSB 154A which was burnt to ashes.
The attackers reportedly identified themselves as enemies of the Dinka people, fighting to take over government in South Sudan. They accused the Dinka and Ugandans of supporting the government of President Salva Kiir.
The attackers interrogated the drivers of the Eco bus for transporting the Dinka people.
“When they introduced themselves as Ugandans, they were told you are the people transporting the Dinka. When you don’t stop we shall finish you and the Ugandans”, one of the attackers was saying by the Gateway bus conductor.
The attackers searched all passengers for money and mobile phones.
“A Dinka lady was humiliated and left after she surrendered unspecified amount of US dollars and Uganda shillings”.
The attackers, armed with rocket propelled grenades and other heavy weaponry, returned passports and some documents before releasing the passengers to return to the main road. According to Heshmid, the attackers took everything they owned. Government soldiers (SPLA) arrived in time to evacuate the passengers on light vehicles and the Friendship and Gateway buses.
The attack comes barely a month after another Eco bus was attacked in Loa, a locality near Pageri in Magwi county in which three people died. There have been several attacks on buses in South Sudan since fresh fighting broke out in July between factions loyal to former vice president Riek Machar and President Kiir.
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