The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) insisted on Tuesday that it was still in control of the Upper Nile State town of Nasir, which rebels loyal to sacked vice president Riek Machar also claim to have taken.
"The SPLA is in control of its garrison in Nasir and the rebels are in control of the airstrip," army spokesman Col. Philip Aguer told Anadolu Agency.
"We are… having an upper hand on them, but the situation is tense," he said.
Asked what he meant by an "upper hand," Aguer responded: "The garrison is the strength of Nasir; when we control it, we control the area."
The rebels had earlier claimed to have captured Nasir.
"The fall of Nasir into the hands of opposition forces… should be seen within the bigger picture," rebel spokesman Jooyul Yol had told AA on Monday.
"The ceasefire [signed in January in Addis Ababa] has been violated many times," Yol had said on the sidelines of a meeting in the Ethiopian capital between Machar and representatives of the Arab League.
The South Sudanese army spokesman spoke of casualties sustained by both sides.
"Eighty-one rebels were killed in the fighting and 73 wounded. On the SPLA side, 18 were wounded and seven killed," he told AA.
"Today they have also been shelling SPLA positions, but I still don't have a clear report," Aguer said.
Rebel forces on Sunday stepped up their offensive against SPLA positions in the area – the biggest since a cessation-of- hostilities agreement was signed in January.
The area had been used by the rebels earlier as a base before government forces assumed control of it.
"It's only a matter of time; we will flush them out," Aguer said.
Meanwhile, fighting flared up in the Ayod area of Jonglei State on Tuesday morning.
"Ayod was attacked this morning, but they [the rebels] were repulsed," Aguer said.
He claimed numerous rebel fighters had been killed as they fled.
"Twenty-five of them were killed, including the commanding officer, Lt. Gen. Manyang Malek," Aguer asserted.
"The situation is still tense; the rebels are planning another attack," he added.
He said the SPLA would continue defending the towns under its control, even as it remained committed to the ceasefire agreement.
South Sudan collapsed into chaos late last year when President Salva Kiir accused Machar of attempting to overthrow his regime.
Hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese have since been displaced in subsequent fighting, while large swathes of the population remain on the brink of humanitarian catastrophe.
Peace talks sponsored by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), a Djibouti-based East Africa trading bloc, are currently stalled.
No date has been set for their resumption, even though the two sides had agreed to form a transitional government within 60 days of signing a June 10 agreement.
By Okech Francis
englishnews@aa.com.tr
www.aa.com.tr/en
