Egyptian Air Force bombs South Sudanese rebels in Upper Nile

“This file photo shows two Dassault Rafale fighter jets operated by the Egyptian Air Force.” Photo: Getty Images/File
Pagak/Juba, February 3, 2017 (SSNA) — The military command of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-In Opposition (SPLA-IO) has accused Egyptian air force of carrying out air attacks on its bases in Kaka town, saying Cairo dropped at least nine bombs and explosions.

Rebel military spokesperson Colonel William Gatjiath Deng, who declined to offer more details, warned that the involvement of JEM, the SPLM-North, and Egypt in the ongoing civil war could provoke a regional war.

“The continuous involvement of the Sudanese rebels and the escalation of the Egyptian participation in the ongoing war in South Sudan are clear indications to the people of South Sudan, the African Union (AU), the United Nations (UN) and the international community that the Juba regime is provoking the region and tilting South Sudan for a regional war,” he said.

Col. Deng also claimed two Sudanese rebel groups: Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the SPLM-North sneaked into South Sudan Thursday from their northern base called Angathna in the Blue Nile and that their intention is to attack and retake Mustakbal, Wadekona, and Detang from the armed opposition.

He further asserted in a statement that combined forces of government and Sudanese rebels launched a coordinated attack on SPLA-IO positions in Detang today, which he said resulted in a shocking defeat to Lelo, adding rebel forces inflicted heavy losses on the enemies forcing them to flee to areas in Renk, Malakal, and Paloch.

He added the SPLA-IO captured 43 PKMs and 300 AK-47s in good condition.

The rebel spokesman further explained that Juba-backed forces were also repulsed in Booth and Mayom of Unity State. He claimed SPLA-IO Special Division captured nine government soldiers and that they are being treated as Prisoners of War.

South Sudanese rebels have increasingly become suspicious of recent bilateral agreements Cairo strucked with Juba.

In January, the SPLM/A-IO accused South Sudan and Egypt of striking a “dirty deal,” saying the agreement would allow Kiir to receive lethal weapons and ammunition from Egypt to wage a full-scale war against the armed opposition.

“There is a dirty deal going between Kiir and El-Sisi. the issue of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is one of the main deals being finalized in Cairo. Our intelligence sources in Kampala and Juba confirmed that Egypt wants South Sudan and Uganda to be her regional allies so that she can advance its covert sabotage campaign against the Ethiopian Dam. The man [Kiir] is a double agent; he will cause many problems for the entire East Africa region,” a senior rebel official told the South Sudan News Agency last month.

The official added that Egyptian military experts and engineers have been in Juba for months and that the entire secret military deal between Juba and Cairo was orchestrated by Kampala last year.

Col. Deng calls on the AU, UN, and the international community to investigate Egypt’s involvement in South Sudan civil war.
Source : Southsudannewsagency.com