Southern Sudan: More Ambushes Near Juba

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000056 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV EAID ASEC MOPS PHUM SOCI SU SUBJECT: Southern Sudan: More Ambushes Near Juba REF: a) 06 Khartoum 02916, b) 06 Khartoum 02667, c) Khartoum 00053 ¶1. Summary: A series of armed attacks east and southeast of Juba on January 7 and 10 claimed three lives, injured 13, and left two missing. There is still no concrete evidence as to the identity of the assailants, but suspicion centers on the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). End summary. -------------- Ambushes Disrupt Major Trade Route to Uganda -------------- ¶2. On the early afternoon of January 7, a group of unidentified armed gunmen ambushed a truck traveling from Juba to Nimule, on the Ugandan border, continuing a string of ambushes in the area (Refs A and B). The route is a key commerce and transportation link for Juba and much of southern Sudan. According to UN sources, the 28-year old driver of the vehicle received a gunshot would to his right hand during the attack; his four passengers escaped injury. ¶3. Later that afternoon on the same road, unknown gunmen ambushed four Ugandan trucks bearing trade goods, resulting in two dead and ten injured. The attack occurred less than 20 kilometers from Juba. Local police did not respond to the attack when notified, according to UN sources. The names of the deceased are not known; one of the two was an SPLA soldier and the other was a Ugandan driver. Witnesses said the attackers wore military fatigues, according to a newspaper report. Although the assailants burned some of the vehicles in the convoy were burned, it is not clear whether they were looted. ¶4. Other vehicles in the convoy managed to stop and reverse direction, avoiding the attack. Among the vehicles that escaped the ambush were two large passenger buses loaded with people and goods. It is not known whether SPLA and Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) units conducting joint patrols along the Juba-Nimule road accompanied the convoy. Security officials in Juba from the SPLA and the UN (both UNMIS military and UN police) state that while the identity of the attackers in the recent incidents has not been definitively established, LRA movements in the area and other evidence suggests that the Ugandan rebel group has been involved in at least some of the recent activities. -------------- -------------- GTZ Vehicle Ambushed January 10, WFP Employee Killed -------------- -------------- ¶5. A World Food Program (WFP) employee traveling died January 10 in another ambush along the Juba-Torit road, the main road transportation link between Juba and the Kenyan border (Ref C). The WFP employee, 28-year old Emmanual Chaku Joseph, rode in a truck operated by the German development organization GTZ en route to a GTZ worksite where he worked on secondment from WFP. At aout 10:00 a.m., a pickup truck departed Juba bearing Joseph, three GTZ employees, and several armed SPLA soldiers as escorts. The well coordinated attack occurred about 90 minutes later, about 40 kilometers southeast of Juba. A reported 10-15 persons in military uniforms attacked the vehicle using AK-47 rifles. Joseph died instantly; two of the five SPLA soldiers and one of the three GTZ employees received injuries. Two of the SPLA soldiers fled the scene but were subsequently apprehended by the attackers. The attackers stole their uniforms and released the two soldiers, according to UN sources. -------------- Region Remains UN Phase 3 Security Area -------------- ¶6. The region east of Juba is classified currently as a Phase 3 security area under the United Nations' local security system. Only essential movement along the Juba-Torit road is permitted. Travel must occur between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., in convoys with a "robust" armed escort consisting of two vehicles each (one at the head of the convoy and one trailing the convoy) with one squad of armed escorts. These restrictions apply to all UN agencies (except UNMIS military personnel) and implementing partners. HUME