South Sudanese govt. forces attack Nuer tribe neighborhood

JUBA

South Sudanese army staged a military offensive on Sunday on a neighborhood of the Nuer tribe from which the sacked vice president, Riek Machar -- the alleged mastermind of a failed coup attempt --, hails.

Five people got injured in the attack on the neighborhood close to a UN refugee camp in Juba, according to locals.

"The soldiers opened fire on the Nuer tribe members who wanted to flee into the camp. And the people reciprocated," Kim Gai, a journalist staying in the UN camp, told Anadolu Agency.

Conflicts are ongoing in capital Juba despite the face-to-face negotiations brokered by Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) between the conflicting parts for a ceasefire.

South Sudanese President Salva Kiir insists the fighting was triggered by what he describes as a failed coup attempt against him by Machar. The crisis starting in mid-December has brought South Sudan to the brink of civil war, with the country's two major ethnic groups – Kiir's Dinka and Machar's Nuer tribe – pitted against one another. More than 1,000 people have reportedly been killed in the recent unrest and over 180,000 displaced.

Meanwhile, thousands of displaced people, most of them belonging to the Nuer tribe, are seeking shelter in two UN camps inside Juba.

The people say the camp areas are more secure than other places and they will not leave the area until they are allowed in. 

UN authorities are trying to make more space in the camps to accept new refugees.South Sudanese govt. forces attack Nuer tribe neighborhood.

englishnews@aa.com.tr